Overcoming the Past, Living for the Future
by skittlesmomma27
Summary: In Bella's short 18 years, she has been through unimaginable tragedy but will Edward be able to help her overcome them? With the help of her friends and Edward will she finally learn how to live for the future.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

BPOV

"Bella can we throw the after prom party at your place next weekend?" One of my best friends, Rosalie Hale, asked as we walked towards the parking lot of Altom High School. We had been best friends, along with Alice Brandon, since I enrolled in the school in the middle of ninth grade. I had been a jumpy, scared, and shy fifteen year old with PTSD. Overcoming my past was proving to be more difficult than I had ever anticipated.

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know, Rosie." I told her timidly as we came to a stop beside my old beat up truck that I had bought the day I got my license a few weeks after I had turned 16. I could have easily afforded something nicer or I could have drove one of the four cars sitting in the garage at home but I had bought a '63 Chevy step-side that used to be red but was now a faded orange color instead.

"You can't seclude yourself in that ginormous house forever, Bells." Rose said as I tossed my backpack into the cab of the truck. "You're going to have to let people in eventually."

I shrugged my shoulders. "There is so much speculation and so many rumors, Rosie, having a party there will only add fuel to the fire." I told her as a group of giggly girls walked past us while shooting curious glances in my direction. I tried my best to ignore them but I had been getting the same reactions since I had first enrolled here the middle of my freshman year, three years ago. People were curious as to why nobody ever saw my parents but all of my forms were always signed and turned in on time. I just allowed people to come to their own conclusions instead of telling them the truth that I was the only one left and my forms were signed by my legal guardian of four years. Nobody knew the truth except for a handful of people, Rosie and Ali were on that very short list of people.

"Most of them are stupid, Bella. You have nothing to hide, kill all of their rumors by inviting them into the house. Stop hiding from everybody." She begged me once again. She had been begging me to do the same thing for over a year now but I had always been hesitant because inviting people into that house would only cause more questions. Where are the people in these pictures? Is that guy her brother? Where are the parents? If she lives in a house like this why does she drive a truck like hers? Why are those doors locked upstairs?

I started shaking my head because the questions that people would ask if they were ever allowed into my house had the potential to slowly kill me from the painful memories they would bring back with a force to be reckoned with. I had missed five days of school when I had finally broken down and told Rosalie and Alice the truth for the first time. "It's too painful, Rosie. I just can't do it. Let's have it at Alice's house instead." I suggested as Alice bounced up to us in her cheerleading outfit. I knew we couldn't hold it at Rose's house, her parents were too stuck up to agree to throw the kind of party my classmates expected.

"What did I hear about Alice's house?" She chirped as she tossed her bag onto the hood of my truck.

I sighed and turned to face her. "After prom party at your house instead of mine." I told her but quickly got a negative shake of the head.

"No can do, sister, remember what happened last time we threw a party there?" She asked with a smile.

I smiled back at her. "How could I forget Ali? She turned an adorable four months old yesterday!" I told her, talking about her four month old daughter, Cassi, that was the result of her parents agreeing to a party after prom last year while they were out of town.

"Yep!" Alice chirped as she showed us pictures of Cassi with her 4 month old outfit on with a huge matching bow headband slid into her light brown curls that matched her daddy's perfectly.

"Will your parents watch her on prom night?" Rose asked after she oohed and ahhed over the pictures. "I know they've been giving you guys grief the past few weeks."

Alice rolled her eyes as she nodded. "I don't know what my dad's issue is here lately. Mom said she would watch Cassi so we could go to prom." She said with a smile thinking about her boyfriend of four years that had graduated last year. Alice's parents had been extremely upset when they found out that Alice and Jasper were pregnant and still in high school but had accepted it since they pretty much gave them no other choice. Alice and Jasper had been living in the apartment above the garage of her parent's house since she was five months pregnant and Jasper had gotten a job at a Construction company downtown just a few weeks after he graduated last May.

"Good, so now we just have to have a spot to have the party." Rose said eyeing me suggestively.

I started shaking my head no when Alice spoke up. "It's perfect, B, we are almost out of high school and the only people from this school that has been further than the gate at the end of your driveway is standing right here besides Jazz and Cassi." Alice said motioning between the three of us.

I sighed. "Fine, but I'm not doing any of the planning, setting up, or cleaning up. That is all on you two!" I told them with a toss-up of my hands.

"Yay!" They both cheered as they hugged me dancing us around in a tiny circle.

Once Alice released me she quickly scrambled up onto the hood of my truck. "Alice, what are you doing?" I hissed quietly because I had a feeling her popularity was about to come into play within the next few minutes.

She just smiled at me before winking and cupping her hands around her face. "AFTER PROM PARTY NEXT SATURDAY NIGHT AT BELLA'S HOUSE!" She screamed out to the top of her lungs which caused Rose to wrap her arms around me tugging me into a loose hug as I groaned into her shoulder.

"Remind me to kill her later." I mumbled into Rose's shoulder.

She patted me on the shoulder. "It will all be okay, B, we will just give her clean up duty when she is having to deal with Cassi and a hangover. You know that even though her parents will watch Cassi prom night they will call her as soon as she wakes up the next morning."

I sighed and nodded because every single time they have said they would watch her so Alice and Jazz could have some teenage moments, Alice's mom was either calling demanding Alice home or banging on the front door with Cassi and diaper bag in tow. "Sounds good to me." I told her as Alice hopped off of my truck.

"Okay guys, I gotta go pick up my baby!" She said as she kissed each of us on the cheek before bouncing across the parking lot to her little yellow Ford Focus that her parents had made her trade her Porsche in for when she had told them she was pregnant last year.

"Bye Ali!" We called after her before we each separated and headed in our own directions. I headed to the grocery store because I was running low at the house.


	2. Chapter 2

**I absolutely do LOVE each and every review but a few of you were concerned that her friends were being pushy and insensitive so let me just clear a few things up before we move forward with the next chapter.**

 **I, for one, have needed a few pushes in my lifetime to get over things and move past them. Her friends know and understand what she has been through but they are trying to get her to at least have a few normal high school experiences that her family would have wanted her to have. Her situation will be explained more in the coming chapters, I promise. Please just trust me! This is absolutely a happy ever after B &E story as all of my stories are.**

 **Now, without further ado...the next chapter in Edward's POV.**

* * *

Chapter 2

EPOV

I watched as Alice Brandon hopped up onto the hood of Isabella's truck announcing that an after prom party was to be held at Bella's house. I hated nicknames with a passion so I usually referred to her as Isabella which usually got me an irritated look and a scowl in return.

"Well I wonder how fun that's gonna be?" My cousin and best friend, Emmett McCarty, asked from beside me as we sat on the tailgate of his truck. I've heard she doesn't even have running water or electricity out there."

I shrugged. "Have you ever seen her house?" I asked him curiously because all you could see from the roads around it was the rooftop because it was surrounded by trees and an eight foot tall privacy fence and as far as I knew of only Rosalie, Alice, and Alice's fiancée were the only ones to have ever been inside the gates. Another thing I abhorred was the rumor mill of high school and small towns.

He shook his head. "No, she's a secretive recluse though. I've heard that she was previously in a mental institution after she went berserk a few years ago and her parents sent her here because they couldn't deal with her anymore."

I groaned. "I'm almost certain that those are all rumors, Emmett. I don't think anybody knows the truth about Isabella aside from those two girls. I've heard that she murdered her parents and brother because they told her she couldn't go to the movies with her friends a few years ago. I've also heard that her parents died in a car accident leaving that huge house to her and her brother who then went mentally insane. Nobody really knows though because before four years ago that house was empty and had been boarded up for as long as I can remember until she came to town. And last time I checked she's not very talkative to anybody outside of Rosalie and Alice." I told him as I hopped off the tailgate and walked over to my car.

"You leaving?" He called back.

I nodded. "Yeah, Mom asked me to come help her finish painting that house she's showing later this week." I told him as I tossed my messenger bag onto the passenger seat of my pride and joy, my silver Volvo that I had gotten for my 16th birthday.

"Suck up!" He called back as he hopped off his tailgate shutting it behind him.

"Pussy!" I called back to him because he still hadn't worked up the courage to aske Rosalie Hale to go to prom with him even though they were often caught sharing glances across a room when they were both in there. "Grow some balls and just ask her already." I told him out my window as I drove past him.

I was going to prom solo and had no qualms about it because the one girl in this school that held my attention was the one girl that had never spoken a word to me, Miss Isabella Swan. She attended all the school functions, always flanked by her best friends, and never smiling or laughing unless it was with Rosalie or Alice. About fifteen minutes later I was pulling into a modest two story house across town that my mom had just acquired from a recently deceased woman's children that she was getting ready to sell. "Mom!?" I called out as I eased open the front door.

"In here, honey!" She called from somewhere inside the house.

I shut the door behind me as I followed her voice only to stop suddenly in the doorway to what I assumed was a bedroom. "Mom, what happened?" I asked her as I tried to contain my laughter at the sight of her standing there with about as much paint on her as was on the walls. She had paint splattered all over her stylish blouse and jeans as well as in her hair and on her face.

"What do you mean? I've been painting all day." She said as she rolled the roller up and down the wall.

I just shook my head as I grabbed a paint brush and small cup of paint to paint the edges. "I think you got as much paint on you as you did on the walls." I told her as I sat down to paint around the baseboards.

"Oh hush, you!" She said as we settled in to paint as we talked quietly.

Once we finished that room and had cleaned up the best we could in the dimming light, we called it a night and headed home. Once we were home I went up to my room to do some homework before dinner when my phone chimed with a Facebook message.

I groaned when I saw that it was from Emmett.

 **Got a date, loner boy!**

I smiled because he must have finally grown the balls to aske out Rosalie.

 **Rosalie?**

 **Yep, I grew those balls and just walked up to her in the grocery store and asked her.**

 **That's great, Emmett. GTG doing homework.**

I told him as I tossed the phone aside and pulled out my Calculus homework.

The rest of that week, the weekend, and all the following week were mundane and routine but it was now the night before prom and I was hanging out with Jasper, Alice, and their baby Cassi. Jazz and I were playing GTA while Alice gave Cassi a bath when we heard yelling outside. "What the hell?" I asked pausing the game as Jasper stood up from the couch going to look out the peephole in the door.

"George must be drunk again." He said quietly as Alice came out of the bathroom with a wet Cassi wrapped in a towel. "Go get Cassi dressed in case we have to leave tonight." He told Alice who simply nodded before going into Cassi's bedroom, shutting the door behind her. I stood up to go stand by Jasper in case he needed help.

"How bad does it get?" I asked him as I leaned back against the kitchen table.

He shrugged. "We normally don't hear him like this because Sharon keeps him over at their house and away from us. It's gotten progressively worse over the past few weeks because we have been letting my mom watch Cassi some days." He said as he flipped the lock, pulling the door open to reveal a very obviously drunk George who was staggering on his two feet with his fist raised. "What's going on, George?" Jasper asked him quietly.

"I came to see my granddaughter and daughter. MARY ALICE?! CASSI MESHELLE?!" He screamed out looking around Jasper and into the apartment.

Jasper just shook his head. "It's Cassi's bedtime, George. Why don't you go home and sleep it off. You can see them both tomorrow. When you're sober."

He shook his head and pulled his fist back and before Jasper or myself could react, he punched Jasper right in the jaw knocking him back a few feet. "DAD!" Alice called from behind me as I helped Jasper get steady on his feet.

"There you are sweetheart." George slurred holding a hand out for Alice.

She shook her head, wrapping her arms firmly around a whimpering Cassi. "You're drunk, dad. Go home." She said as she shuffled her daughter from side to side to calm her cries while she glared at her dad.

"I am home, you slut. This is MY HOUSE! You want to act grown-up, why don't you get your OWN house. Then you will know what it is like to be a grown-up." He said with an accusatory finger pointed at Jasper.

Alice gasped and I watched as tears formed in her eyes. "You're just drunk, dad. Please go home and we can discuss all of this tomorrow. You are scaring Cassi." She pleaded with him as she stepped closer to Jasper while cradling Cassi against her chest still trying to calm her down.

"THIS IS MY HOME!" He roared shaking his head and wobbly in his spot. "If you don't like what I'm saying then why don't YOU get out of MY house!" He practically spat at us.

With a sob, Alice ran to Cassi's room while Jasper glared at George. "You don't know what you are saying or doing, George. Please don't do this to your daughter or granddaughter. It's late and we all have a big day tomorrow." He begged him quietly trying to keep the peace between his girlfriend and her father.

"Keep talking, son, and your ass will end up in jail for statutory rape and Sharon and I will get custody of Cassi. My baby was 16 when you knocked her up and you were 18." He said pointing a finger at Jasper.

I heard Alice gasp from behind me with a still whimpering Cassi sitting in her car seat with the stuffed diaper bag slung over her shoulder. "It's okay, Alice. Give me Cassi. You guys can come stay at my house tonight until you guys can all talk." I told her quietly as I reached for Cassi's carrier.

She shook her head but handed me Cassi's carrier. "Please get my baby safely to the car while I deal with my father." She pleaded with me.

I nodded. "Okay." I told her as I walked out the door, dodging agilely around a staggering George. I heard some more screams come from the apartment as I latched Cassi's car seat to the base in the backseat of Alice's car before turning my phone onto music to help drown them out and hopefully calm Cassi down some.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

BPOV

I groaned as I threw myself across my bed with my cell phone plastered to my ear. "I thought you and I were both going solo like we did last year." I told her out loud but secretly I was happy for her because she has been crushing on Emmett McCarty ever since I had known her.

"I'm sorry, B. Maybe we can group date it?" She suggested to placate me.

I eyed my beautiful lime green floor length satin prom dress with the jewel details below the bust and around the back of the dress. The jewel detail ran along the straps that wrapped around my neck before leading to a single strip that would lay down the middle of my otherwise bare back until it connected to the dress again right at the small of my back. It had taken a lot of arguments and two fittings to get the girls to agree to my choice of footwear which required the dress to be hemmed a few inches. "No, it's okay. I will go solo, like planned. You have wanted this for so long, Rosie. I will be fine. I'm happy for you." I told her quietly.

"No, I know you don't like these kinds of things. I can just tell Emmett no and we can stick to our original plans. Me, you, Ali, and Jazz." She said quickly causing me to sit up on the bed giving myself a head rush.

I shook my head until I realized she couldn't see me. "Absolutely not, Rosalie. You have liked this boy for as long as I can remember and you will go to our senior prom with him. I will meet you tomorrow to get ready." I told her firmly.

"You sure, B?"

I smiled. "Yeah, I'm positive. When did he ask you out?" I asked her because prom was tomorrow so he was cutting is awfully short notice.

"Last week at the grocery store." She mumbled so lowly I almost missed it.

"You want to repeat that? Because it sounded suspiciously like you said last week."

Her groan was all the answer I needed. "He asked you out last week and you wait until the day before prom to tell me that I no longer have a date?!"

"I'm sorry, B. I didn't know how to tell you and I know you are anxious enough about the party at your house tomorrow night and I didn't want to add to it."

I sighed. "I've decided to just accept the party for what it is. I know you and Ali will make sure I'm okay during and if things get too bad then I can always retreat to my rooms." I told her as I looked around my bedroom. It was completely different from the one I had grown up with until four years ago when my world was turned upside down one stormy night. This one I had furnished and decorated myself while my parents had done my childhood room. This entire house had a touch of me in each and every room. I had kept some of the old antiques but most of the furniture had had to be replaced before I moved in because nobody had lived in the house for almost twenty years. This was the house my mother had grown up in until she had defied her father and married my dad before either of them were finished with college. She had inherited it when her dad had passed away before I was born but we had never stepped foot in here together as a family. I had stepped in here as an orphan three and a half years ago with every trepidation in the world resting on my young shoulders.

"We will, B. This is a good thing, you know. You may even have some fun. Alice and I will be there tomorrow morning, bright and early, to help set up for the party before we get ready for prom." Rosalie chirped into the phone.

"Okay Rosie, I love you sister." I mumbled into the phone.

"Love you too, sister. See you in the morning."

I tossed the phone on the bed beside me on my huge king sized bed that Marcus, my now legal guardian and long-time friend of my parents, brother, and myself, had told me was too big for a fifteen year old. I had argued and told him that I was almost 16 and could grow into it and that I wanted the room to sprawl out if I wanted to. Speaking of Marcus, I needed to call him for my monthly update that was required for my allowance from my trust fund and also because I didn't want him to worry about me. I reached for my phone and dialed the number I now knew by heart.

"Well hello, Izzy B. How are you sweet girl?" The elderly man said through the phone that caused me to smile despite the irritation at the nickname he had given me when I was just a baby.

"I'm good, Uncle Marcus, prom is tomorrow and I'm throwing a party with Ali and Rosie." I told him as I climbed from my bed walking to my huge bay window that held a pretty good sized seat and offered an expansive view of the woods and mountains surrounding my house.

He coughed before answering. "You are actually allowing people beside Rosalie and Alice through the gate?"

I giggled because he had been bugging me for the past two years that I was safe and needed to let more people into my life. He had reassured me that just because I let people into my life didn't mean that I had to tell them my story because that was buried and no amount of digging would ever uncover the truth unless I wanted it uncovered. "Yes, Alice and Rosalie talked me into throwing the party here. I'm a little nervous about it but I am going to graduate in just a few months so I figured it was time to give in to their constant demands."

"You're not gonna get pregnant and have a baby like your friend did at the last prom party are you?" He teased because he was aware of Alice's party and subsequent pregnancy.

I laughed and groaned that come out more like a dying frog than anything human. "No, I don't think you have to worry about that happening to me. I've not even spoken to a boy unless school required it in all the time I had been attending here. When are you coming for a visit?" I asked him trying to steer the conversation onto him and away from me.

"On graduation, you know that. Do you have a date for this prom?" He said effectively dodging my attempt at diversion.

I groaned as I walked out of my room and down the stairs that led to the main floor of the old house that had been home to me for the past three and a half almost four years. Pictures of my parents, my older brother, his girlfriend, and myself were scattered throughout each and every room in this house as reminders of what I had lost and why I kept getting up each morning. "Rosie was supposed to be my date but she got asked by some guy that she's been crushing on for years now so I am dateless as of about an hour ago." I told him as I opened the front door that opened onto a massive front porch that wrapped around the entire house both downstairs and upstairs. I plopped down onto the massive porch bed swing that I had installed to replace the old one that had been broken and dangling by old chains. This one hung from thick ropes that were knotted on the bottom for a rustic look and had over 20 colorful pillows stacked along the back and one end that matched the cushion cover. I pushed gently on the porch boards sending the massive swing into a gentle swinging motion as I plopped back against the pillows.

"Will you send me a picture?" Marcus asked after a few moments of silence.

I smiled. "Sure, will you take it by to show them?" I asked him somberly thinking of my family.

"Izzy B..."

"Please, Uncle Marcus, they deserve to see this after everything they sacrificed for me." I told him thinking of the biggest sacrifice every member of my family gave that fateful night almost four years ago to allow me a future. Their lives.

"Okay but you could always put it there yourself when you come out next month. I'm sure they would love a visit from you. I bet you will look beautiful as always." He croaked out before coughing to try and cover his tear strained voice. Him and my dad had been partners on the police department in Chicago for as long as I could remember so I knew it was hard for him to remember also. He was in almost every important memory of my childhood and was in most of the pictures I still had stashed in one of the locked rooms upstairs waiting for the day I was brave enough to crack them all open again. The photos that were scattered throughout the house were the same ones that had been in the house I had grown up in. Everything else had been packed up and stacked into the three spare bedrooms upstairs and the doors have been locked for nearly four years.

"Thanks, Uncle Marcus." I told him softly as I watched the sun set over the trees in my front yard. I could hear the vehicles passing on the road beyond those trees and security gate that sat at the end of the curving driveway.

"No problem, sweet girl, that's what I'm here for. Have you run Annie off yet?" He asked already knowing the answer to that question.

I sighed as I plucked at a rare string on one of the pillows. "I don't need a babysitter anymore and I don't need a damn maid."

"I know but I don't like the idea of you living in that huge old house all by yourself."

I just laughed. "It gives me lots of space to think and work things through and I am rarely alone in this house. I think Rose and Alice spend just about as much time here as I do." I told him as I heard the distinct sound of the gate opening at the end of the driveway. There were only three people in the entire world that had the security code to that gate, me, Alice, and Rosalie. I changed it every seventeen days and always slipped the new code into their notebooks at school so it wasn't spoken out loud. "Speaking of, one of them is pulling up now." I told him as I sat up to see which one it was.

I was shocked when I saw two extra heads in Alice's car as it followed the driveway around the corner of the house. "Okay, sweet girl. I love you, and I will be waiting on Sunday for that picture. Have fun this weekend and give the girls my love too. Don't forget about next month."

"It's impossible for me to forget about next month, Uncle Marcus, love you too." I told him as I ended the call as I stood up and practically raced around the porch to the back of the house where the garage was with my truck and now Alice's car sitting in the driveway. I paused in my tracks when Alice, Jasper who was holding Cassi's carrier, and another guy who I recognized as Edward Cullen from school emerged from her car. "Ali?" I called to her as my palms began to sweat and my heart raced as my anxiety ratcheted up a few levels at the sight of the beautiful stranger standing in my driveway. Jasper had spent more than a few nights here but Alice usually called and let me know he was coming in advance so something major must be going on for her to just show up with him and Edward.

Alice raced to me and threw her arms around my still shocked form knocking me back a few steps. She sobbed into my shoulder as Jasper said something to Edward before walking over to where I held Alice who was now sobbing uncontrollably. "I'm sorry, Bella, we didn't know where else to go. I know how you feel about other people coming to your house and I honestly didn't think anything about it when we all piled in my car and left." He rambled out as he stroked Alice's back trying to calm her down.

"What happened?" I asked quietly as I cautioned a glance at Edward as he played with Cassi who was in her carrier on the trunk of Alice's car.

Alice hiccupped and pulled back to look at me with blood shot eyes. "My dad showed up at our front door drunk off of his ass. He punched Jasper in the jaw and threatened to press charges against Jasper and take Cassi away from us. Can they take our baby away, B?"

I shook my head and smiled at her. "You guys are amazing parents, Alice. Jasper works and supports both you and Cassi while you are finishing high school. Nobody can dispute that you are doing what is best for Cassi. Cassi is blessed to have you and Jazz as her parents, you know that and so do I." I reassured her which brought a smile to her face. "What else happened?"

"Edward took Cassi down to the car while I told George that if he ever threatened my family again, it would be the last thing he ever did. Nobody and I mean nobody is going to threaten my family like that." Jasper said through gritted teeth.

Alice let go of me wrapping her arms around Jasper's waist and tucking her head under his chin. "When Jazz made that declaration, dad went ballistic and started throwing my canisters that are on the countertop and told us to get our stuff and get out of his house. We just left with the clothes on our backs and Cassi's diaper bag. Mom met us outside begging us to just over look him and come back tomorrow. I was raised in that environment and I don't want that for my daughter. I never did."

Jasper sighed as he kissed the top of Alice's head. "We'll figure all of that out tomorrow, sweetheart. I'm sorry B, Edward was there playing video games after we had worked out, so he left with us and I guess Alice just didn't think before heading straight here." Jazz explained.

I sighed and nodded. "Why don't you guys go take Cassi up to her room and get her to sleep while I go take a moment?" I suggested shakily feeling my anxiety getting the better of me.

"Are you sure it's okay for us all to stay here tonight, Bela? We can run Edward home. It's not that big of a deal." Jasper asked again as Cassi's laughter echoed down the driveway causing us all to smile.

I nodded as I eased away from them. "It's fine, I just need a few minutes alone. Please. Consider this a practice run for tomorrow night." I begged them as I headed across the grass towards the gazebo that was set at the edge of the woods, away from the house a bit allowing for privacy.

"Okay, love you sister." Alice called after me.

I smiled as I shook my head. "Love you too, sister."


	4. Chapter 4

**So...this story will most likely not be as long as my stories usually are...probably around 15 chapters or so with each chapter being about 1500 words. Please be patient with our girl and her story will be revealed in coming chapters.**

* * *

Chapter 4

EPOV

"Is she going to be okay?" I asked Jasper as he showed me to the guest room on the bottom floor of the huge old house that was creepy looking on the outside yet homey and comfortable on the inside.

Jasper nodded. "Yeah, Ali's helping her out. She's not used to many people staying in the house with her. I've only stayed here a hand full of times with Ali and Cassi. Usually it's just Rose and Alice who stay here with her." He rambled as he leaned against the doorframe of the room with the baby monitor hooked in his pocket.

"Does she live here by herself?" I asked because there was no indication that anybody other than Isabella lived here, despite the numerous pictures I had saw as Jasper showed me the bathroom, living room, and kitchen. All of the pictures seemed to be at least a few years old because Isabella's hair hadn't been shoulder length short since she first moved here years ago.

Jasper nodded again. "Yeah, but that's all I can tell you Edward, because that is all I know. That is her story to share and nobody else's, she's very private with her personal life." He informed me quietly as a soft whimper sounded through the baby monitor. "That's my cue. By the way, don't sneak up on her because she will deck you without thinking twice. Announce yourself somehow before you get close to her by making some sort of noise." He said with a wink as he bounded out of the room and up the stairs to Cassi's impressively fully furnished nursery.

I decided to venture outside and ask Bella myself if it was okay for me to stay the night, if it wasn't I could have Emmett come get me and take me home. As soon as I opened the front door I heard a gasp from somewhere to my left. "Isabella?" I called out quietly because it was now fully dark outside and I couldn't really see her.

"Yes, please call me Bella." She said quietly.

I sighed as I closed the door behind me. "Is it okay for me to come out?" I asked her before taking a step further out onto the porch.

I heard her take an audible breath. "Yes."

I walked to the edge of the porch letting my eyes adjust to the darkness when the porch suddenly came to life with blindingly bright lights. "What the-?" I asked startled as I looked around suspiciously.

"Security lights. You triggered them when you stepped to the top steps." She explained softly.

"Well at least I can see you clearly now." I told her as I turned to where her voice was coming from.

She remained silent but nodded as she pulled her knees up resting her chin on top of them and wrapping her arms around them, effectively hugging herself. She was sitting, looking so tiny, in the corner of a huge porch swing that had a shitload of colorful pillows lining the back and sides.

I sighed as I sat in the chair closest to me while her wide eyes watched my every move cautiously. I couldn't stay away from her, not when she was in such close proximity, but I also didn't want to scare her away with the enormity of my feelings or my mere presence. "If you are so skittish with me being here how are you going to deal with the party tomorrow night?" I asked her curiously just trying to get her to talk.

She shrugged but remained silent. "Would you like me to leave tonight? I can have my mom or cousin come pick me up." I told her quickly.

She shrugged and shook her head but still remained silent.

"Are you always so quiet?" I asked her tentatively.

She shrugged again.

"I will take that as a yes." I told her with a slight chuckle.

She shrugged once again. When a few minutes went by with nothing from her I set the chair in a slow motion as I started tapping out the beats to Journey's song _Don't Stop Believin_ before I started singing it which caused the most beautiful sound I had heard in a long time come from the other end of the porch. Isabella was joining me in on the lyrics which really surprised me because a lot of our generation didn't listen to Journey anymore.

 _Just a small town girl_

 _Livin' in a lonely world_

 _She took the midnight train_

 _Goin' anywhere_

 _Just a city boy_

 _Born and raised in South Detroit_

 _He took the midnight train_

 _Goin' anywhere_

Our voices blended together perfectly as we sung the song that had absolutely no bearing on either of us but I figured since she was a girl she would like the song and I liked the piano music that was played in it not necessarily the lyrics that went along with the music.

 _A singer in a smokey room_

 _The smell of wine and cheap perfume_

 _For a smile they can share the night_

 _It goes on and on and on and on_

 _Strangers waiting_

 _Up and own the boulevard_

 _Their shadows searching_

 _In the night_

 _Streetlight people_

 _Livin' just to find emotion_

 _Hidin' somewhere in the night_

I smiled to myself as I drummed the mucic on my thigh as I listened to her hum the background noise of the song. I took a deep breath before delving into the next part of the song.

 _Workin' hard to get my fil_

 _Everybody wants a thrill_

 _Payin' anything to roll the dice_

 _Just one more time_

 _Some will win_

 _Some will lose_

 _Some were born to sing the blues_

 _Oh, the movie never ends_

 _It goes on and on and on and on_

 _Strangers waiting_

 _Up and down the boulevard_

 _Their shadows searching_

 _In the night_

 _Streetlight people_

 _Livin' just to find emotion_

 _Hidin' somewhere in the night_

I hummed and beat the interlude out on my thighs as we both just stared at one another with small smiles on our faces. This was practically a dream come true and I wasn't going to potentially ruin it until the song was finished.

 _Don't stop believin'_

 _Hold on to that feelin'_

 _Streetlight people_

 _Don't stop believin'_

 _Hold on_

 _Streetlight people_

 _Don't stop believin'_

 _Hold on to that feelin'_

 _Streetlight people_

Once we finished off the song, silence fell around us once again until she shocked me by actually asking me a question for the first time in all the time I had known of her existence. "What was you tapping on your leg?" She asked timidly. The most she had ever spoken directly to me in all the years we had known about one another. I had not only known her from around school but Jasper and I used to play baseball together and quickly became buddies so I often heard Alice commenting about Isabella or overhear her on the phone with her or Rosalie. Even though Jasper had graduated last year, we still hung out working out or playing video games.

I smiled at her as I held my fingers up and wiggled them at her playfully. "There is more to me than just a football and baseball star, Isabella. I have played the piano since I was old enough to sit on the bench by myself. I also play the guitar, which I picked up when I was 12 years old." I told her with a wink in her direction.

She growled at me and rolled her eyes. "I had no idea that you played any instruments. Please call me Bella."

I shook my head. "I detest shortened versions of names."

She rolled her eyes again but we were interrupted before either of us had a chance to speak again. "You guys want to help string up some of the lights tonight so we don't have so much to do tomorrow?" Alice asked as she came outside with a cranky Cassi resting in the sling that was slung around Alice's neck and a weary Jasper following behind her.

"She won't go down?" I heard Bella ask her.

Alice shook her head. "Nope, I guess she's still irritated and anxious from all the earlier commotion. You want to try? You know you have a special touch with her."

I was shocked to see Isabella smile and nod as she held her arms out for the sling that Alice was taking from around her neck. I watched as she laid down on the massive porch swing laying the baby between her body and the row of pillows on the back of the swing with her back facing us. She began singing Adele's song _Daydreamer_ to the baby. "Come on Edward, we are going to string the lights up on the rest of the porch and out in the gazebo." Alice said tugging me up from my chair.

"Dude, what was up with you and Bella singing earlier? I've only heard her sing to Cassi before and only a handful of times." Jasper asked as we strung the lights up in the gazebo per Alice's detailed instructions.

I shrugged as I worked a strand of the tiny white lights around one of the posts. "I don't know, I was just trying to get her to talk so I started singing that song. The piano tune has been stuck in my head for weeks now so it was the first one I thought of. I was honestly just trying to break the tension of the silence up." I told him because it wasn't intentional to have a beautiful duet on her front porch instead of an actual conversation.

"I think you like her."

"I've liked her for a few years now but she's so skittish. She barely talks at all. I actually got a full few sentences out of her earlier but then she went quiet again." I told him quietly because the girls were still up on the porch and I didn't want my voice to carry across the yard in the quiet of darkness.

Jasper nodded. "She's very skittish and private but she's a great girl, Edward. It took her almost three months before she actually carried on a conversation with me that was more than one or two word answers."

"What happened to her, I wonder?" I asked not really expecting an answer because he had told me earlier that it wasn't his place to tell her story even if he had known it.

Jasper sighed because he couldn't and wouldn't betray her by answering that even if he could. "She's got secrets, Edward. She's got demons along with those secrets, Edward. But she's a good girl and very sweet."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

BPOV

"Good job, sister." Alice told me as she scooped a now sleeping Cassi up off the swing to carry her upstairs to her crib.

I giggled quietly as she walked away with her now sleeping daughter. I had had to sing three full songs before the beautiful little girls eyes finally gave up the fight and slid shut in slumber. Alice and I resituated Cassi until she was lying between us with my back up against the pillows an Alice on the outside. We left her there between us on the swing bed for almost an hour to make sure she would stay asleep while we talked quietly between us.

I peeked up over the edge of the pillows to watch Edward and Jasper string lights carefully up in the trees around the edge of the property and on the gazebo. I'm sure it would look beautiful when it was all finished and plugged in. "Got a crush, B?" Alice asked shocking me out of my secret viewing.

I immediately started shaking my head. "He calls me Isabella. It's irritating." I told her as she laid back down beside me with the baby monitor attached to the waistband of her Hello kitty pajama pants she had apparently changed into.

"It's romantic and sexy. Edward has a thing for given names. He only calls me Alice and Jazz, Jasper. Something to do with his name being shortened to Eddie or Ed by people." She said as we each turned on our sides so that we were facing each other.

"Oh. It's still slightly irritating." I said because that explained why he ignored my request to call me Bella. "He is kind of cute. I've noticed him around school before."

Alice just smiled at me. "It's okay to have a crush, B. Edward's a good guy, he's liked you for ages. I overheard him telling Jasper a while back." She said softly as she reached out to grab my hand in comfort.

I shrugged. "I don't know how to do any of that, Ali." I admitted softly.

"It's all a learning process, Bella. The first step is to actually get to know him. Let him in a tiny bit at a time. Stop shying away from all human contact."

I tensed up at the thought of having somebody besides those closest to me actually knowing the truth of my past. "It's scary, Ali. Look what happened when I told you and Rosie the truth."

She nodded as she squeezed my hand tightly. "I know, but Edward is a good guy and will understand. He won't judge you, Bella. He's like you in that respect. Neither of you guys judged Jasper and I when we got pregnant with Cassi."

"How exactly do you know Edward? You've never mentioned him before." I asked curiously. "I've seen him around school and town but we've never spoken really. He's just always been in the background."

Alice giggled. "I have mentioned him, just never by name. Does 'Jazz's friend' ring a bell?"

I nodded as several conversations flickered through my memory of Alice explaining that Jazz was having a guys's night with his friend and his friend's cousin. "Wow, I never put two and two together." I said dumbfounded.

Alice just laughed as she glanced over my shoulder. "Yeah, that much is obvious." She said quietly as we heard the guys laugh from across the yard. I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face at the sound of their laughter. "It's okay to like him Bella, it's natural."

I groaned. "I'm scared, Ali. It's not fair to bring him into all of my troubles."

She nodded in understanding as a commotion on the steps alerted us to the presence of the guys. "You're troubles are just your past, Bella. It's time to forgive yourself for surviving and live the life your parents and brother wanted you to live. Do it for them." She said with a squeeze of my hand in reassurance.

"You ready for bed, Ali? I know Cassi will be up in a few hours wanting something to eat since she didn't eat much earlier because she was so upset." Jasper asked holding a hand out for her.

She placed her hand in his allowing him to pull her up setting the bed into a gentle rocking rhythm. "Yep. Goodnight, sister. Love you." She told me with a wink.

I smiled and bid her goodnight too. "Love you too, sister. Goodnight, you guys. Ali you still have milk in the freezer from last time." I called out as a reminder in case she needed it or wanted it.

"Okay." She chirped just as her and Jasper went through the front door of the house.

I watched as Edward sat down in the chair he had sat in earlier. "Did you get all the lights finished?" I asked him nervously.

He shook his head as he watched me curiously as I sat up in the corner of the swing again. "We got the trees, gazebo, and the back half of the porch finished, but we still have to do this part and the sides of the porch tomorrow and hang the lanterns from the trees in the front and back yard according to Jasper. By the way, this is a beautiful house, Isabella. Do you live here alone?" He asked me quietly causing my breath to hitch and my heart start racing as my anxiety started to set in.

I nodded but remained silent as I curled my knees up to my chest wrapping my arms around them once again. It was my go to protective position.

I watched as he leaned forward bracing his elbows on his knees as he cocked his head at me. "Am I making you nervous?"

I nodded again but managed to crack a small smile to reassure him that I would be okay. "A little but I will be okay. Alice and my Uncle Marcus tell me all the time that I need this."

"Do you want me to go?"

I shook my head.

"Okay, have you lived here alone since you moved to town?"

I nodded and closed my eyes as the tears automatically sprung to them. "Please stop. Don't ask those questions." I begged him quietly as my chest began falling rapidly with my panicked breathing and my hands began to tremble.

"Okay, pretty girl. Calm down." He said calling me something other than Isabella for the first time.

I took a few deep breaths before unclenching my hands and slowly opening my eyes only to find him watching me intently. "Thank you." I whispered hoarsely a few minutes later as I managed to get my anxiety back under control. I was shocked that he had stayed there through my anxiety attack but he was. Still in the same position he was in before except now he had worry lines creasing his forehead. "I'm okay just please don't ask those questions." I told him as I tried to force a small smile on my lips. Not sure if I managed to do it or not because his facial expression never changed but I sighed in relief when he nodded in acquiescence.

"Okay. What's your favorite subject in school?" He asked before flashing me a brief smile.

We continued to chat quietly until we were both yawning more than we were talking. "I think it's time we called it a night, Isabella." Edward said after he witnessed me yawning so wide I thought my jaw was going to become unhinged.

I nodded as I sat up on the swing causing it to rock slightly. "I have to say it just one more time. That is one nice ass porch swing you have there." Edward said as he stood from the chair he had occupied the entire time we had been on the porch talking and bend nearly at a 90 degree angle stretching his back muscles out. He seemed happy and content to discuss the generic topics the whole time, never trying to dig or delve deeper into what a mystery my life was to not only him but everybody but Alice and Rose.

I laughed as I climbed out of it stretching my back and hearing it crack in the quiet night air. "Yeah, you've only said that two or three times. I'm so scared that it's going to get defiled somehow tomorrow night." I admitted to him as I walked past him through the door he held open for me, allowing me to pass by him into the house first.

"The only person that should be allowed to defile that swing is you. It is your house after all." He said with a wink as he shut the door behind us.

I gasped, blushed, and ducked my head. "There is a greater chance that a meteor will strike this house than the chance of me defiling that swing any time in the near future." I said and immediately pulled my bottom lip between my teeth once what I said actually registered in my brain. I was known for my witty comebacks and smart mouth around my closest friends. Alice. Rose. Jazz. Uncle Marcus.

"Don't be so sure about that, Isabella. Goodnight. Sweet dreams. I will see you in the morning." Edward said as he shocked the living shit out of me as he placed a gentle kiss to the side of my head as he walked past me and into the guest room that was downstairs. Apparently I wasn't the only one that had quick and witty comebacks.

The guest room was tiny with nothing but a full size bed, night table, and chair in the corner with pocket doors that led into the hallway. It was my grandfather's office, or so I guessed by the boxes of files I had pulled out of there and the furniture that used to be in there. It had stayed that way with the pocket doors always closed and locked until Alice had Cassi leaving Rose with no room to call her own. When Cassi was born we had scoured the dusty attic for the nursery furniture we had saw up there so that we could turn the room next to Alice and Jazz's room into a nursery. It had worked out beautifully, Alice and Jazz had the room with a connecting bathroom shared with Cassi's nursery and Rose had a small room to call her own downstairs for when they all spent the night and us girls didn't end up in my huge bed together.

I just stood there not knowing what to do about what had just happened until I heard the tell-tall click of the double sliding pocket doors clicking shut. I quickly locked the front door before setting the alarm and flipping the lights off for the night. I headed up the stairs to where my bedroom and bathroom was in a daze about what had happened at the front door just a few minutes ago. My rooms were at the end of the hall from Alice's rooms with two locked bedrooms between us. Just as I was about to twist the doorknob on my bedroom door that I never remembered shutting earlier Alice called to me from Cassi's room. "B, come here for a sec, please."

I smiled softly as I tiptoed into the little girls room to see her snuggled in her momma's arm as Alice rocked gently in the old fashioned wooden rocker that had been part of the attic find along with the antique crib and changing table. I had saw the same pieces in pictures of my mom when she was just a baby as I was going through all the stuff in the house when I had first moved in here. "What's up, Ali?" I asked her quietly as I sat on the little chaise lounger that sat in the corner of the room.

She just smiled at me with that look in her eye and without a word spoken from her I knew she wanted details of mine and Edward's conversation that had kept us up until the wee hours of the morning on the front porch. "We just talked, Ali. He sat in the chair while I was on the swing and we just chatted about meaningless bull crap." I told her with a small smile. "It was nice. Really nice, actually." I admitted quietly.

She nodded. "I told you, he's a good guy, B. You can trust him."

I smiled and shook my head. "Don't know if I'm ready for that yet, Ali. We just talked about inconsequential things, nothing deep. Not after my mini panic attack when he asked me if I lived here alone since moving to town."

She scrunched up her face. "Why the panic attack, B? That is a simple yes or no question. You are letting your head think and dictate too much."

I sighed. "It would have led to more questions. Where are my parents? Why would a teenager be allowed to live in a big house all by herself and left to her devices while attending high school? How do I pay for all of this stuff? Where are the people in the pictures? Why isn't anybody allowed through the gate?" I rattled off irritably.

"So what? Answer the questions and move on with your life. It's time, B. Your parents and brother wouldn't want you living like this, you know that. Hell, I know that and I didn't even know them when they were alive." She said angrily. I knew deep down that she was saying all of this with the best of intentions but it still hurt even though everything she said was true.

"You still have your mom and dad, Ali. I don't. They were all murdered protecting me! Me!" I told her clenching my fists tightly together to try and get my anxiety and anger under control.

She nodded. "I know that, B. They done it because they loved you and wanted to protect you. The only reason they wanted to protect you was because they loved you. They wouldn't want you living this type of life after everything they sacrifice for you to have it."

It was my turn to nod this time. "I know, Ali. How can I truly move on when they will never have that opportunity? It's so unfair. I never asked them to do that for me." I told her as I felt my tears spill over my cheeks.

She got up from the rocker and walked over to the crib to lay a once again snoozing Cassi down in the crib, turning the mobile above her on to play gentle soothing music. Once she had Cassi settled and sleeping soundly she walked over and pulled me into her arms as she settled beside me on the chaise. "It is very unfair, B. Life's unfair, honey, but we have to take what is dealt to us. Your parents and brother should have had the pleasure to see you go to prom, see you graduate, see you fall in love for the first time, see you live out the life they wanted you to have since you were a twinkle in all their eyes. But this is what life dealt you, babe, accept it, live it, and move on. You have grieved for them for over three years, I think your family would want you to live the life they died trying to give you."

I just hugged her tighter to me. "I know, Ali, but I don't know how. I don't know how to move on because I'm scared that if I move on I will forget all my memories of them. I have a hard time remembering them even now, the memories are starting to fade."

"I can only imagine how hard it is, B, but you can't let that stop you. Just give Edward a chance to be a friend. Give everybody around you a chance to be your friend but start with Edward. He's smitten already." She pleaded quietly as Cassi's soft snores began filling the room.

I nodded. "I'm trying, Ali. I'm trying. What are you and Jazz gonna do?" I asked changing the subject.

She sighed as she sat us up on the chaise. "I don't know. I guess we will start by going to get our clothes today, at least. Are you sure it's okay for us to move in here?"

"Absolutely. Marcus was just telling me that he didn't like the idea of me staying in this big old house all alone. He hoped Annie would still be here." I told her with a roll of my eyes.

Alice just laughed. "You didn't even let her bring her suitcase up onto the porch!" She said as we stood from the chaise and began to quietly leave the nursery.

I just laughed as she shut the door behind us, it closing with a soft click. "I have told him time and time again I don't need nor do I want a damn babysitter or maid." I told her the same thing I had told Uncle Marcus for the past two years. The first year I was in this house it was nice having somebody here but once I got settled into my routine and got really close with Alice and Rose, I didn't want anybody else living in my house.

"I know, B. We better get to bed, we have a busy day tomorrow." She said as she hugged me in front of hers and Jasper's room.

"Goodnight, Ali. Love you."

"Love you too, B."

I walked into my bedroom, leaving the door open like I always did at night time. I went through my nightly routine of washing my face, brushing my teeth, changing into my shorts and tank top for bed, and brushing my waist length dark brown hair out so that it falls in soft waves around my shoulders. Once my routine was finished I crawled beneath my blankets and thought about everything that had happened tonight. I decided that I was going to try my hardest to move on. For my parents. For my brother. For myself.


	6. Chapter 6

**Just so we're clear...this 'tiny town' that these characters live in is a figment of my imagination but a 'state' will be necessary in the coming chapters and that state will be Georgia!**

Chapter 6

EPOV

Since I hadn't intended on spending the night anywhere besides home, I stripped down to my boxers and wife-beater folding my jeans and t-shirt up on the chair in the corner before laying down on top of the blankets of the bed in the room Jasper had showed me earlier. I was just about to doze off when I heard soft talking coming through the air vent at the top of the wall. I instantly recognized the voices as Isabella and Alice so I grabbed my iPhone and headphones off the night table before slipping the buds into my ears and turning the music on so that I couldn't overhear their conversation. I wanted to get to know Isabella because she felt safe and secure enough to tell me, not because I overheard her talking to one of her best friends.

The next thing I knew sunlight was streaming through the windows and a loud thumping on the door was dragging me from my slumber. "What?" I called out to the person thumping loudly and steadily on the damn door as I pulled my pillow over my head.

"Bella's got breakfast cooking if you want some." Jasper's voice echoed through the door.

I groaned as I tossed the pillow aside. "Okay." I grumbled back to him as I sat up in the bed.

I heard Jasper chuckle right outside the door. "Emmett brought you some clean clothes also."

I hopped off the bed, sliding the lock open before cracking the door and sticking my head through the gap. "Give me." I told Jasper as I rubbed my other hand over my face and through my hair trying to wake my self up and get my bearings.

"Here, Mr. Grumpy." Jasper said with a smile.

"Sue me, I had a late night." I growled as I snatched the bag through the gap before shutting it again sliding the lock into place. I sat down on the edge of the rumpled sheets tossing the bag beside me as I tried to get myself awake and ascertain what time it was when my phone started vibrating from beneath the pile of blankets. I finally found it only to see Emmett's name highlighting the screen. "What? I will be out in five minutes. Jesus, give people some time to wake up." I snapped into the phone instead of saying hello.

"Um..." The timid female voice said in return which caused my eyebrows to shoot up to my hairline in confusion.

"Who is this?" I asked cautiously as I emptied the contents of the bag out onto the bed to see what Emmett had brought me to wear today. I was a bit leery because Emmett could be a bit juvenile when he wanted to be.

"It's Bella, I was just calling to let you know that I really am cooking breakfast, Jazz wasn't lying about that." She said timidly.

I groaned and shook my head. "I'm sorry, pretty girl. Breakfast sounds fantastic. What are you cooking?" I asked her as I laid aside my shorts, clean boxers, a tank top and my plaid button up shirt that obviously my mother had packed and not my cousin.

"Blueberry pancakes, honey syrup, sausage, bacon, and eggs. You interested?" She asked teasingly.

"Absolutely. You got coffee out there?" I asked her as I stuffed yesterday's clothes into the bag.

She hummed in acknowledgement. "Of course. I can't function properly without at least two cups of coffee in the morning."

"Great minds think alike, Isabella. Do I have time for a quick shower before breakfast?" I asked hesitantly because that really would make the day start off correctly.

"Yes." She answered and I could hear other people chattering in the background and through the walls of the house. "Top of the stairs, second door on the right. Towels in the closet behind the door."

I stood up, snatching my jeans back out of the bag stepping into them before I snatched up my clean clothes and the bag so I could stuff my dirty jeans into it after my shower. "Great. Thanks, pretty girl. See you in ten or fifteen minutes." I told her as I slipped out of the bedroom and up the stairs quietly so as to not alert attention to myself.

Twenty minutes later I walked into the kitchen only to find Isabella standing at the stove flipping what looked like sausage patties and nobody else was to be seen. "Good morning, pretty girl." I told her from the doorway so as to not startle her. I had no intention of ever scaring this beautiful nervous girl, plus I had been forewarned what could happen if I did sneak up on her.

"Good morning, Edward." She said softly. "The cups are in the cupboard above the coffee pot." She said motioning to the state of art coffee machine that was emitting amazing aromas throughout the kitchen.

"Thanks. Where is everybody else?" I asked her as I fixed me a cup of coffee before leaning against the counter crossing my bare feet at the ankles beside the machine which was also coincidentally just a few feet from where she stood at the stove.

She shot a smile at me from over her shoulder before returning her attention back to the pan in front of her. "Ali practically begged to have breakfast outside on the porch this morning so they are all out there waiting patiently." She said pointing to a set of french doors that stood on the other side of the kitchen.

"I think that's a great idea. It looks like it's going to be a gorgeous day today. Perfect prom weather, I suppose." I told her with a plan forming in the back of my mind.

She shrugged as she slid some of the sausage patties onto an already overflowing plate. "I guess."

"Not interested in going to our last big hurrah before graduation? It would be a shame if the hostess of the after party wasn't even at the big event." I told her with a pretend puppy dog pout.

She turned and looked at me before wrinkling her nose adorably and shaking her head. "Not really into the big events. Plus, I don't have anything even remotely resembling a date now that your cousin stole my solo partner."

I just laughed because I had been left in the same predicament but I couldn't bring myself to complain because Emmett had finally manned up. "Emmett's been building up the balls to ask Rosalie to prom for months. I'm sorry he stole your date though. You can always be my solo partner instead." I told her nonchalantly.

She dropped the spatula as she whirled around to face me head on. "Repeat that please." She demanded.

"Go to prom with me." I told her with a smile gracing my lips as I took a small sip of my coffee.

"I...can't...I'm not...You don't...I don't..." She stuttered before clamping her jaw tight and settled for glaring at me.

"You can. You are not damaged. We don't have to match but just so you know, my suit is solid black. Black shirt, black jacket, and black pants. I don't have a date, Emmett was to be my 'solo partner' as you called it. Consider it a first date if you want." I said answering her stutters to the best of my ability. I held my breath because this was like a dream come true for me if she said yes.

She just shook her head. "I've never been on a date before." I exhaled sharply as tiny stabs of disappointment filtered through my system but I wasn't giving up but I also wasn't going to push her if she wasn't ready. Talking to her last night would be enough for now if she wasn't comfortable with more.

"So? There is a first time for everything. No expectations, just friends. I am a patient man, Isabella, and I believe that you are worth my patience." I reiterated while slowly sipping my coffee.

"I won't be a good date. I'm jumpy, nervous, skittish...scarred." She said before trailing off when she saw me shaking my head to each thing she listed off.

"That's what first dates are for, pretty girl. Like I said, I am a patient man and you are worth it. Give me a chance. Please?" I asked her quietly just as the voices outside got a little bit louder.

Before she could answer me, our friends and family walked back inside demanding to know where breakfast was. I kept casting glances at her throughout breakfast but she would just smile, shake her head, and duck her head allowing her hair to hide her face from me. She never spoke a single word throughout the entire breakfast but I just chalked it up to her being nervous about Emmett and I joining her normal crowd for the amazing meal. It got no better after breakfast because the girls shooed us boys out into the yard while they cleaned up the house and got the rooms ready for the party tonight. Alice had suggested that we all get ready together and ride to prom together, and who was I to go against great plans. She and Jasper had swung by my house when they went to go get there clothes to pick up my prom suit.

Isabella didn't give me an answer to my suggestion the entire day, she always found a reason to avoid talking to me or even coming close to me. Now, I was standing in front of a mirror in the small downstairs half bathroom trying to tame my wild mane a little bit not knowing if I had a date or not. A timid knock on the door saved me from driving myself crazy trying to tame the untamable.

I opened the door to reveal a beautifully dressed Rosalie standing there in a stunning bright orange dress that had more rhinestones and shine than material. "What's up? Is it time to leave yet?" I asked her as I flipped off the light stepping out of the bathroom heading back to the room I had been using to grab my jacket.

She shook her head as she fell into step beside me, the sound of her bare feet slapping against the hardwood floors. "No, but Bella asked Alice to get this for you earlier when she went to grab some of their stuff." She said shoving a lime green strip of cloth into my hands as I stepped through the door so that I could grab my jacket off the bed. I unfolded the strip of material and quickly realized it to be a tie. I guess I got my answer after all. I officially had a date to prom!

"Is she sure about this? I don't want her freaking out over the implications of this." I asked her as I slipped the tie around my neck and under the collar of my black shirt.

Rosalie nodded. "She's sure. She's attempting to move on from her past and live in the present. Be careful with her, Edward, or your balls are mine. You understand me? That girl has been through the unimaginable and still came out of it to be as amazing as she is. Be careful with her, Edward Cullen. Consider this your only warning." She threatened with a death glare sent in my direction.

I gulped and nodded. "I have no intentions of being anything but careful with her, Rosalie. She's the one in control here, I will move at her pace. I have liked her way too long to rush this and potentially scare her off. Just like I told her, I am a patient man and she's worth it."

The smile that spread across Rosalie's face told me that I had said the exact right thing to her threat. "Good. That's what she deserves and is also what she needs. We leave in 20 minutes."

I just stared after her in amazement as she left in a flourish back up the stairs to where the girls had been secluded together for past three hours getting ready. I grabbed my suit jacket off the bed before following the sound of Jasper and Emmett's voices into the living room. "That tie looks suspiciously similar to the color of Bella's dress." Jasper said with a sly smile on his face.

I just shrugged my shoulders as I shrugged into my jacket, completing my outfit. "So?" I asked as I sat down in one of the empty chairs, crossing my leg over my knee to keep from bouncing them in nervous anticipation.

"Good for you, man." Jasper said with a smile. "Last night and tonight both are a huge step in the right direction for her."

"What happened to her? I noticed she was all jumpy this morning when I tried to hug her and then she disappeared for a while before coming back." Emmett asked curiously.

I shook my head while Jasper just sighed and hung his head. "That's Bella's story to share, not mine." Jasper told him, saying the same thing he had told me yesterday.

I nodded in agreement. "Just be gentle, Emmett. You can't man handle her like you do most people. She's obviously not used to having so many people around her, especially guys." I said, sharing the little bit of insight I had acquired in the past 24 hours. "And we are going to prom as just friends." I informed them as we all turned to look at the stairs as soon as we heard a door click open.

Jasper nodded in agreement just as a throat cleared from the direction of the top of the stairs causing all of us to stand up quickly. "It's showtime, boys." Jasper said with a smile as he led us all in that direction. Emmett and I followed behind him, watching the beautiful young ladies descend the stairs slowly. Alice was first, wearing an extremely short sparkly hot pink dress and a pair of sparkly white chucks on her feet with hot pink shoe strings. "Chucks, Alice?" I teased her which caused Isabella to giggle and Alice to roll her eyes pointing over her shoulder towards the beauty in lime green.

"Bella's only demand to agreeing to all of this." She said as she danced into Jasper's arms leaving Rose the next one fully exposed. I had already seen her dress but caught sight of her white sparkly chuck covered feet, hers matched Alice's except they had orange shoe strings to match her dress.

"It's definitely different." I said quietly as I watched mesmerized as Isabella came fully into view. Her dress was lime green with some kind of jewel accent below her impressive chest and around her neck. Her hair was hanging over one shoulder in gentle curls with a silver clasp holding her hair in place from the looks of it. She had a death grip on the railing even though she had her white chucks on her feet. I figured she was nervous about us going to prom together, and just going to prom in general so I stepped onto the staircase taking them two at a time until I was on the one right below her. "Pretty girl?" I asked quietly when I heard her harsh intake of breath.

She shook her head but kept her head down and her grip on the railing. "Look at me, please?" I begged her quietly while our friends chatted and laughed at the bottom of the staircase.

"I can't do this, Edward. I can't" She said starting to take a step back until I reached out and took her hand in mine.

"Don't run away. Please." I begged her as I squeezed her hand gently.

She sighed and shook her head. "That's what I'm good at. It's all I know anymore." She said so quietly I almost didn't hear her.

"That's bullshit. You didn't run away from us talking last night. You don't run away from Rosalie or Alice or Jasper. You are just outside of your comfort zone and don't know how to handle it. But I have news for you, Isabella. I am here. Right here. And your friends are right here. To help you deal with it and conquer it." I told her firmly.

She stepped both feet back onto the step above me and finally raised tear-stained eyes up to me. "Okay." She whispered as a hint of a smile ghosted across her lips.

"Good. Now, can we go to prom and have a good time?" I asked her as I stepped up onto the same step as her turning to face our friends and holding my hand out palm up, letting her make the next move.

She took a deep breath as she glanced from my face to my lips to my hand and back and forth about five or six times before releasing the held breath and laying her hand in mine. "Yes." She said softly as she curled her fingers around mine.

"Nice dress and choice in footwear by the way." I told her as we walked down the rest of the stairs together.

She chuckled lightly. "Thanks. It's hard enough for me to stay vertical in flat shoes much less the heals Rose had picked out to match this dress." She said as we stepped off the staircase.

"I'll help you stay vertical tonight, pretty girl." I told her as let her step ahead of me as we were going out the front door. That was when I got the first glimpse of the back of her dress, or lack thereof. There was nothing but a solitary strip of jewels running down the middle of her back to base of her spine where it connected with the dress once again. It was apparent then why she had her hair styled the way she did, to show off the back of the dress. "It's gonna be a long night." I mumbled to myself as I piled into backseat of Emmett's jeep. The guys were driving to prom in his Jeep while the girls were taking Rosalie's car and meeting us there.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

BPOV

Surprisingly enough prom had been a blast. I had danced with Alice and Rosalie first, just until I had gotten used to the crowd, then we split up into couples. I had been apprehensive when the girls suggested that we dance with the guys but Alice reassured me that Edward was a great guy and Rosalie told me that she had basically threatened his manhood if he so much as upset me. So I had taken a deep breath and moved into Edward's loose embrace.

Edward and I danced to several slow songs before my anxiety had gotten the better of me from being on a crowded dance floor and in his arms. Edward had understood so he quietly escorted me outside for a breath of fresh air before going back in to tell the others that we were leaving. We climbed into Emmett's Jeep, Edward driving because my hands were still shaking, and headed back to my house so that I could take a few minutes in my normal surroundings to calm down. I immediately went to my swing, curling up in the corner of it as he disappeared to give me my space that I so desperately needed. It shocked me a little bit when I realized I kept looking around for him when he was gone too long, but I had to admit, it was kind of a nice feeling also. Maybe this whole thing wouldn't be too bad. I smiled as I saw all the lights come on in the gazebo and surrounding bushes because I knew that he was taking initiative with getting everything ready for when the partygoers arrived.

"Pretty girl, you okay? Alice just called and said they are heading this way. Everybody is following behind them. Are you ready for this?" Edward asked as he rounded the other end of the porch bringing me out of my musings.

I looked up at him with a small smile on my face. "Yeah, I just need to go make sure those doors are locked upstairs as well as all the bedroom doors we used today." I told him nervously as I went to stand up from the swing.

He shook his head. "Alice gave me the key and stressed the importance that those doors specifically had to stay locked. I figured you wouldn't want horny teenagers having wild drunken sex on your bed or anybody else's in your house so I locked all the bedroom doors and upstairs bathroom." He said producing the one key that worked on every single door in my house except the outside doors. It was a skeleton key that Uncle Marcus had given me when I opted to move into this house years ago. It hung from a simple thin strip of leather.

I nodded. "Thanks, Edward." I told him as I slipped the leather cord that the key hung from over my neck allowing the key to fall and rest delicately between my cleavage that was exposed by my dresses neckline.

"You wanna tell me what's in those rooms or are you just going to leave me curious?" He asked as he sat down on the other side of the swing instead of the chair he had used last night. Sighing I turned away from his intense stare to look out at my tree lined yard.

I shook my head. "If I said memories of a life lost would you be satisfied?" I asked him quietly while I secretly hoped and prayed that he would accept my simple explanation.

He nodded. "Is it true? Are they memories of a life lost?"

I gulped and nodded as a thick knot tightened my throat as tears flooded my eyes. "Yes." I croaked.

"Then it's the truth so why wouldn't I accept it? Thank you for taking a chance with me. It means more than I think you can ever imagine." He said quietly as he extended a hand over for me to grab if I wanted to.

I wanted to so I did. Our clasped hands resting on the space between us seemed right somehow. It seemed like a move in the right direction. "I don't know. Most people don't like vague answers."

He chuckled quietly as he looked at me intensely. "I will accept vague answers with a promise of a future explanation over a flat out and out no any day. I'm a patient man, baby, I told you that and I will prove it if it's the last thing I do on this earth." He told me passionately. I had no choice but to believe him, he left no room for miscommunication or misunderstanding with that statement.

"Okay, thanks for your patience and for tonight." I told him as my heart swelled and raced as he called me 'baby'. Jasper calls Ali that all the time but, I had never been called that by anybody except my parents so it was thrilling to finally have that experience in my bag. Spending last night, today, and tonight with Edward made me think that Alice and Rosalie and Uncle Marcus were all right. I needed to move on and experience life, that is what my parents would want for me. Being with Edward like this was really nice, I honestly could say I was excited to see what the night would bring.

Edward laid down on the swing with his feet still on the porch, he rolled his head to look at me with a smirk gracing his face. "Absolutely, but just so you know, our date is not over yet. I fully intend to end this tonight at your bedroom door. With a kiss of some fashion." He said as what I had come to consider his trademark smirk spread across his face making his eyes sparkle.

I just smiled at him as I heard a car coming up the driveway. "We'll see." I said as Rosalie's car along with multiple sets of headlights came into view. "Right now though, it's party time." I whispered to him as I gripped his hand tightly as my breathing became labored from the anxiety I was feeling at the sight of all these people coming into my space. Space that only a handful of people had seen prior to tonight.

"Hey." He called trying to drag my attention away from the cars lining up in my driveway. "Isabella, look at me." He said but I couldn't pull my eyes away from the people spilling from the cars and the noise they made. I tried to concentrate on my breathing before it got too out of control but nothing was working as my eyes grew bigger and bigger as more people poured out into my yard and started towards the porch with Alice an Rosalie in the lead.

I was startled when his fingers touched my cheek forcefully averting my attention back to him. "What?" I whispered because he was only a few inches from me whereas last time I had looked at him he was on the other side of the swing.

He just smiled at me as he suddenly leaned forward kissing me gently on the lips. I was shocked stock still as he gently kissed my lips. Once. Twice. Three times. He had effectively taken my attention away from the people piling onto the porch and into the house because all I could concentrate on now was the fact that my lips were tingling. He had just kissed me. My first kiss ever that came from somebody other than my family or Rose and Alice. "What was that?" I whispered as my fingers touched my lips as he looked at me intensely before shrugging and laying back down on the swing pushing his feet against the porch setting us in a gentle rhythm.

"That was a kiss, to pull your attention back to me and away from all of them. Did it work?" He said with a wink.

I groaned but couldn't stop the smile that spread across my face. "Maybe. My heart is still racing though but for a different reason than anxiety. My breathing is still ragged but also for a different reason than the fact that my space is being invaded by over a hundred horny and tipsy teenagers." I rambled nervously.

"You want a drink?" He asked interrupting my ramblings smoothly just as the music started up in the house.

I shrugged. "Why not? What do you suggest?" I asked him as I fingered my lips still reeling from the impromptu kiss. I was on a roll tonight and didn't feel like stopping now.

"Do you like the bitter taste of alcohol?" He asked as he played with my fingers on the swing between us like he was doing before everybody had started arriving.

I scrunched up my nose, shaking my head slightly. "Not really. I'm not much of a drinker. I used to-" I stopped suddenly because I was about to share a memory of my parents and the life I had with them.

"Used to what? Trust me, Isabella." He pleaded with me with puppy dog eyes and a gentle squeeze of my hand.

I nodded and took a deep breath. "I used to be allowed to take a sip of my parent's wine at dinner. They said that this would keep me from going behind their backs to find out what it tasted like. My dad used to drink bailey's rum with my Uncle Marcus after a rough shift at the precinct and it became my favorite to taste." I whispered quietly as a soft smile spread across my face at the memories that fluttered through my brain. Apparently talking about the memories made them clearer instead of foggy.

"My dad is the total opposite. He freaked out the first time he caught Emmett and I drunk in the basement. Emmett picked the lock on the liquor cabinet and snuck out a bottle of bourbon so we could do shots. We were thirteen at the time." He said with a shake of his head. My eyes widened at his admission.

"What happened?" I asked curiously because if that was my dad, I would have been banned to my room for months only to be allowed out for school, dinner, and bathroom breaks.

He groaned shaking his head. "He made both of us go do 5 hours community service down at the jail and also spend every afternoon after school at the hospital with him. I haven't gotten that drunk since then."

I nodded. "I bet. My dad would have probably locked me in a jail cell for a night or several hours at least if I had done something like that. The first time he had to go get my brother from a party because he was too drunk to drive home, he made Jake spend the rest of the night in the 'drunk tank' at the station." I said with a slight chuckle.

"Was your dad a cop?"

I ducked my head but nodded anyways. "Yeah. Sherriff of Forks, Washington. Where I was born and raised until..." I trailed off as I looked up at him with wide tear filled eyes.

He shook his head. "It's okay. You've done amazing, pretty girl. How about a sea breeze?" He suggested softly as Alice and Jasper walked by us on their way around the corner of the house with a wink in our direction.

"What's in it?" I asked curiously.

He just rolled his eyes at my curiosity. "Vodka, cranberry juice, grapefruit juice, and ice."

I giggled at his exaggerated reaction to my simple question. "Sounds good." I said as I impulsively leaned down smacking my lips against his quickly. Once. Twice. Three times just like he did to me a few moments ago. I figured it would help clear the memories out of my head and boy was I right. Because before I pulled away after the third gentle peck his hand had found its way into my hair, stopping my escape. I looked at him with wide eyes but he just smirked as he leaned in again taking my bottom lip between his teeth this time, shocking me to my core. But surprisingly enough I wasn't scared of him in the slightest, his touch sent shivers of a different kind racing down my spine.

He bit my lip gently before releasing it with a smile that could outshine all the lights in my yard. "Be right back, pretty girl." He said with a smile as he climbed from the swing heading into the house through the front door.

I wasn't all that surprised when Edward's vacated seat was taken. "What is up with all that? Kissing already and did I hear you share a memory of your dad and brother?" Rosie asked as she flopped down in Edward's vacated seat.

I shrugged. "Your point? Edward just went to get us drinks so he'll be right back." I told her as a shy smile lit up my face as the memories of the past 24 hours flittered through my brain.

She just laughed as she pulled her jean clad legs up onto the swing, tucking them under her. "Felt good, didn't it?"

I nodded. "I just hope I don't screw it up too bad. You know, I have to go back there next month, and God only knows how I will be when I get back. I'm okay with kissing him like that but I don't know how I will react when he wants to hold me or even more." I told her quietly, not wanting all of my business spread all over school.

She nodded in understanding. "You will be fine. You have all of us standing in your corner, you are not alone in any of this." She suggested softly. "Emmett even told some douchebags to shut up or go home a few minutes ago when they were making comments about you."

I sighed and smiled. "I know and I appreciate it, from all of you. You guys were all right about me needing to let more people in to get over my fright and anxiety. Edward is great at distracting me." I told her just as I spied Edward walking through the front door of the house with a bottle in one hand and a glass in the other.

"Is that what you are calling it? A distraction? Whatever works for you two but it was hot and everybody here saw it. You are the hot topic right now." She chirped with a wide smile as I heard Emmett laugh from somewhere behind us.

"Really? Everybody saw it?" I asked half mortified and half cocky because it means that hopefully people will leave us alone and let us be whatever we were being.

Rose nodded. "Yep, you seemed comfortable with it though, not frightened at all. So Alice and I just left you two be in your own little world."

It was my turn to nod and smile brightly. "His touch is different. A small squeeze of my hand makes me want to hold his hand tighter and longer, a soft stroke of my hand makes me wish he would stroke my whole arm, and his kisses make me want to think about things I have only heard of from you and Alice." I said with a brilliant blush.

"It's called chemistry, Bella. Lust, passion, and chemistry. Give in to it, he won't hurt you. He's promised." She said with a wink. "Love you, sister." Rosalie said as she got up from the swing just as Edward stepped to the end of it. "Even if she becomes your girlfriend my warning from earlier will always hold." She said pointing a finger in Edward's direction before walking back into the house.

"What was that about? Besides trying to scare me." He asked as he handed me my drink before settling back beside me on the swing with about four or five inches between us.

"Being nosy about..." I paused motioning between our bodies "...us." I ended quietly as I took a small sip of the drink he brought me. It was good. Sweet and not overly tangy.

"Us, huh?" He said taking a sip out of his bottle before grinning widely at me. "I kind of like the sound of that."

I just nodded as I took another sip of my drink. "Surprisingly, me too."

We sat on that swing sipping our single drink and chatting about all kinds of things, both inconsequential and important until he shocked me silent with a simple question. "Will you be my girlfriend, Isabella?"


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

EPOV

Sitting on that swing, still in our prom clothes, chatting about anything and everything while also being able to enjoy the silences was absolutely amazing. But, sitting there watching her reaction to my simple yet important life changing question was torture.

She sat there looking at me with wide eyes as her mouth open and shut several times while she twisted her fingers together nervously. "I..." She started but clamped her mouth shut as she ducked her head.

"Pretty girl, listen to me right quick before you answer my original question. Just because you say yes doesn't mean I am going to expect anything other than what you are comfortable with. I have liked you since you first walked into school three and a half years ago and spilled all of your books in the middle of the hallway. I understand without you telling me that something tragic has happened in your past and I am assuming that is what brought you here in the first place. You need to understand that I am not expecting anything from you other than to be able to hold your hand, call you my girlfriend, and possibly..." I trailed off as I leaned closer to her which caused her eyes to grow wide. "...be able to kiss you every once in a while." I told her just before I pecked her gently on the lips, shocking her. "What do you say, Isabella?"

She smiled as she kissed me again, shocking me. "No expectations other than those three?"

I shook my head. "Nope." I said with a smile.

"Yes." She said as a mega-watt yet timid smile lit up her face.

I just blinked at her for a few seconds before pulling her into my arms instinctually. She tensed up momentarily but I just held on to see her reaction. She finally giggled as we fell backwards onto the swing. I rolled us so that she was lying flat on the mattress and I was on my side beside her. "Thank you, pretty girl." I whispered quietly as I pushed a few strands of her hair off of her face.

"I can't promise I will be a good girlfriend but I will try my best."

I shook my head. "Just be yourself, Isabella. Let's let things progress naturally. We are both 18 years old with plans to go to the local university so we have no reason to rush anything." I said letting her know that I was okay with going slow and that I was listening to everything she had been telling me in the past 24 hours and also a few things she hadn't verbally but physically had said.

"Okay. I have to go to Washington next month." She blurted out before sighing and closing her eyes, trying to shut out the world.

I just smiled as I stroked the side of her face gently. "That's where you're from, right?" I asked her quietly as I placed a few inches between us so as to not worry or scare her off.

She nodded but didn't say anything or open her eyes. "Okay, how long are you going to be gone?" I asked her quietly as I just looked at her waiting for her to open her eyes.

"Seven days. I have to go testify at the end of next month. It's during the break from last day of classes and graduation. I'm leaving on a Monday and coming back the following Monday since graduation preparation starts that Tuesday." She rambled nervously as her body began to tremble slightly.

I placed my fingers over her lips causing her eyes to pop open wide. "Calm down, you are getting worked up over it. Take a deep breath, please." I begged her quietly because her chest was rising and falling rapidly clearly showing her anxiety levels were rising.

She nodded as she closed her eyes again and started forcing herself to breathe more normally. "Thank you." She whispered quietly.

I nodded. "Anything, pretty girl, anytime. Want to explain the details of that trip or not right now?" I asked her quietly because as much as I wanted to know what she was having to testify over if she wasn't ready to explain it then I would wait until she was.

"Now. Because you deserve to know if we are going to do this relationship thing. I remember my mom saying that secrets were the death of a successful relationship. But, do you mind if we do it up on my private patio away from prying ears?" She asked hesitantly.

I smiled and shook my head. "Sounds like a plan." I told her as I rolled over so that I could sit up.

We walked into the house and up the stairs hand in hand and silently. I pulled her to a stop at the top of the stairs. "Give me five minutes to change?" I asked her quietly.

She smiled and nodded as she let go of my hand walking down the hall to her bedroom. I was just opening the linen closet door to retrieve my small stack of clothes that Alice had told me stash earlier today so that we wouldn't have to fool with the skeleton key just to change clothes when I heard the last voice in the world I wanted to hear. "I see you finally shook off the clingy weirdo, Eddy."

I groaned laying my head against the door frame. "What do you want, Tanya?" I asked impatiently as I tugged my tie undone. I had tugged it loose earlier but left the knot so that I wouldn't loose it.

"To talk to you. I think we left things in a bad spot but I know that we can work through them. I forgive you for kissing the looser out on the porch." She said sweetly as she laid a hand between my shoulder blades.

I shook her off as I turned around to glare at her. "We are OVER! Get that through all that bleach and hair extensions already." I told her through gritted teeth. Tanya and I had dated for four whole months which ended nearly six months ago after I had come back from vacation with my parents to find out she had been screwing her ex, Jacob Black, the entire two weeks I had been gone. "I am with Isabella now, and you are not allowed to talk about her." I told her as I snatched my jeans, t-shirt, socks, and shoes out of the small linen closet.

"You can't hold a grudge forever, Eddy." She said as she stuck her bottom lip out so far I thought it was going to detach itself and roll down onto the hardwood floor.

I shook my head as I stepped past her. "Stop calling me that name, you know I hate it. I hated it when I was a kid, I hated it when we dated, and I will hate it when I'm 50 and married to Isabella." I told her firmly as I slipped into the bathroom right next to the linen closet locking the door behind me.

I leaned back against the door to take a breather. I listened as closely as I could as Tanya stomped around right outside the door before huffing, mumbling 'Bitch' under her breath, and slapping the door. I tossed my stuff onto the counter as I yanked open the door catching Tanya's hand mid-air. "You have one more chance and I wouldn't waste it if I was you. If you call my girlfriend any type of derogatory name ever again, I will tell the whole world how loose you really are and release that video of you and Irina you gave me for my birthday. Don't try me, Tanya, I am fed up with your bullshit. Move on already." I sneered at her angrily.

Her eyes went huge at my threat before she swallowed tightly. "What does derog-"

I held my hand up with a roll of my eyes. "Look it up." I told her before shutting the bathroom door in her face clicking the lock into place just to be on the safe side.

One glance at my watch told me that I had wasted my five minutes plus some arguing with Tanya in the hallway and Isabella must think I'm not gonna show. I sighed in defeat as I snatched my stuff up in my arms before leaving the bathroom and heading down the hall still in my suit from prom. I hesitantly knocked on her door.

"He- why are you still in your prom clothes?" She asked when she opened her door to get a good look at me. She was dressed in what appeared to be a well-worn pair of jeans if the holes in the knees and wear and tear at the pockets was any indication to the frequency of use. She had paired the jeans with a simple dark grey and light grey sweater that hung loosely off of her and allowed the whole set-up to scream 'COMFORT IS WHAT I'M AIMING FOR' all the way around.

I sighed and shook my head. "Run in with the ex. Can I use your bathroom? I'm scared she's going to try to squirm her way into the bathroom with me." I asked her sweetly.

She arched an eyebrow at me. "Uh huh. You thought I would get worried because you are a few minutes late, didn't you?" She asked cockily.

I laughed and nodded. "Absolutely. Ask Alice or Jasper, I'm usually very punctual and a stickler for either being early or right on time." I told her honestly when I heard Alice's guffaws from behind the door.

"He's not lying, B. He's anal about it, I swear." She said as she popped around from behind the door.

I just shrugged because I wasn't going to deny it.

"Bathroom is through that door." Isabella said as she pointed to a door on the other side of her room.

I nodded. "Thank you, pretty girl. Two minutes, I promise." I told her sheepishly as I walked into her room for the first time ever. I tried to take everything in as I made my way to the bathroom but I didn't want to take longer than the time I had told her.

"You can snoop after you change, Edward, time's a tickin'." Alice said causing me to groan and high tail it to the door before slipping inside.

As I stripped out of my suit I took a good slow look around her bathroom. It had the old clawfoot tub with a huge built in cabinet that was filled with all kinds of things from the looks of it. The top half of the built-in had four glass paned doors on it while the bottom had two rows of two drawers, the thing was massive and took up the whole back wall of the bathroom with a door beside it. Looking around I saw one important fixture missing, the toilet, so that is what I assumed the door was hiding. Behind the bathtub was a huge window with flimsy white curtains hanging over them. I could see the lights in the trees of the backyard through the curtains. On the other end of the room was two pedestal sinks that sparkled they were so white with another set of built-in's between the two sinks. The room was feminine yet not overly so and still managed to maintain the history of the house with the built-in's that looked original and the wooden floors beneath my feet.

Once I was fully dressed in my jeans, graphic t-shirt, and socks with my shoes in one hand and my prom clothes in the other I emerged from the bathroom to find Isabella sitting on the window seat of her bay window. "My mom would love your bathroom." I told her to both announce my entrance and to give something more of my home life to her. I laid my stuff in the chair that was beside the bathroom door as I padded across the floor until I was standing beside her. I didn't even try to hide the fact that I was scoping out her bedroom. It was pure curiosity driving me now. I looked around the bedroom of the young woman who had held my attention from afar and had recently just agreed to be my girlfriend's bedroom and saw bits and pieces of her placed randomly throughout. This room was more her than the entirety of the rest of the house.

She turned to smile at me. "Maybe she can come see it one day." She said quietly shocking me as I continued to look around.

"Maybe." I told her as I continued looking around the room. The bed was massive and took up more than half of the space in the room that I figured was the master bedroom so it immediately caught my attention. It was old and detailed and dark yet still light and feminine with the stark white bedding, pillows, and material running through the rungs above the mattress. "That is one impressive bed." I told her with a crooked smile because I was a teenage boy and I honestly couldn't stop the images that began flashing through my mind as I took in her massive bed. It had to be at least a California king but I couldn't be certain.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

BPOV

I wasn't surprised in the least when a timid knock came knocking on my bedroom door seconds after I had slipped through it. "It's me, B." Alice said quietly from the other side.

I chuckled as I twisted the knob and let her into the room. I caught a glimpse of Edward and some girl talking down the hall but Alice shut the door before I could get a good look of who it was. "Don't look, I'm sure he will explain when he gets here." Alice said shaking her head.

I nodded as I reached behind me unhooking the strip of jewels from the bottom half of my dress so that I could take the thing off and get into some comfortable clothes. "What's up?" I asked Alice as I slipped out of my dress before hanging it up on the hanger that was left out from earlier.

"Nothing much, just coming to check on you is all. I saw you and Edward kissing and touching on the porch earlier, I think the whole school saw you two being all cozy and cute on the swing." She said with a wink as she slipped her flip flops off and sliding onto my bed. It was a huge four poster bed that took up most of the room but I loved the history and sturdiness of it even though the mattress and covers were new.

I just rolled my eyes at her as I slipped into my favorite pair of blue jeans that had holes at both the front and back pockets and knees from continued use. I pulled the stick on bra pads Rose had demanded I wear with my dress off tossing them in my trash can before slipping into my bra that matched my lime green cheeky panties. I grabbed my two sizes two big grey striped sweater off the top of my dresser before turning to face Alice who was sitting there with a smile on her face waiting for me to comment. "It's different, Ali. I never expected to be comfortable enough to able to be so...so..." I said throwing my hands up in the air in frustration because I didn't know the right word to use.

"Touchy feely? Comfortable? Passionate? Frisky?" Alice said offering up multiple verbs for me to pick from.

I just shrugged but nodded. "Yeah. He asked me to be his girlfriend while we were down there."

Her eyes got huge as her mouth gaped and closed much like a fish does when it's out of the water.

I laughed as I reached forward shutting her mouth for her. "It's okay, Ali. I said yes and Rose has already threatened him more than once tonight."

"That's great, Bella, really great. Are you ready for a relationship and all that that entails?" She asked softly while looking at me with huge wide scared eyes. I knew she was worried about me but I needed to do this, this would help me move past this stage of just being stuck in life. I would be eternally grateful for her and Rose for helping me how much they had helped me up until this point but they were both living their own lives also. Rose fully intended on moving to California for college and Alice had Cassi and Jasper to concentrate on and a wedding to plan once graduation was over. From now on it was going to be up to me to choose to move forward with my life and actually live it like my parents and brother would want me to.

I nodded. "Yeah, he says he has no expectations except to be able to hold my hand in public, the pleasure of calling me his girlfriend, and possibly a kiss or two on occasion." I explained to her with a smile. "I'm okay, Ali. I promise. You and Jasper will be here to make sure of that now that you are living here." I told her as I wrapped her up in a hug.

She snuggled into my arms as I faintly heard her sniffling. "What's wrong, Ali?" I asked her quietly.

She shook her head. "It's nothing bad, I'm just so proud of you and I know your parents would be too. This is what they would have wanted for you, Bella. I can say that because if something was to happen to me I would want Cassi to have the best possible life ever. Take a chance. Follow your heart. Live a life worth living. Fall in love." She said as a small smile graced her lips just as an urgent knock sounded on my bedroom door.

"I'm hoping Edward will be willing to help me do just that." I told her as I kissed the side of her head. "Thank you for being such a great friend, sister."

She nodded as she slipped off the side of the bed while I went to answer the knock on my door. "He-" I started to say when I noticed Edward standing there with wide eyes and still in his prom suit. "Why are you still in your prom clothes?"

After hearing him say he had a run-in with his ex my anxiety level raised a few levels but joking with Alice and him about him being anal about being punctual eased it back down again. I pointed to my bathroom door and he headed in that direction with Alice teasing him that he could look around once he was finished in the bathroom. Once the bathroom door clicked shut I turned to face Alice who was practically vibrating in place from her excitement. "You two are so adorable." She said as she launched herself at me.

I laughed as I stumbled back a few feet. "Thanks, Ali. We're going to hang out on the balcony up here for a little bit before coming down, okay? Please watch the house?" I asked because on one hand I was glad that I hadn't had to mingle with any of the people in my house besides Rose, Emmett, Alice, Jasper, and Edward and on the other hand I wanted to move past the part in my life where I kept myself secluded and shut off from everybody except a select few people.

"Okay, we will all be down there somewhere. Take your time." She said with a kiss to my cheek as she bounced out of the room shutting the door behind her. I walked to my favorite spot in the entire room besides my massive bed, my window seat. I looked out the window and saw a number of my classmates and younger classmates having fun under the massive oak trees that had lanterns hanging from the lower limbs in the backyard.

I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face when I heard the bathroom door click open and closed again. "My mom would love your bathroom." Edward said quietly.

I turned my head to look at him. "Maybe she can come see it one day." I watched as he took in my entire bedroom as he laid his clothes in the chair right beside the bathroom door. It was one of a pair that worked as my seating area between my bathroom door and my closet. He walked slowly to me as a sexy smirk spread across his face.

"Maybe." He said softly nodding his head as his eyes widened when they settled on my bed. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing at his reaction, because it was so similar to the same one Alice, Rosalie, and Jasper had all had when they spied the thick posts that ran from the floor to the top of my canopy reaching an impressive eight and a half feet tall. Marcus had had to have a mattress and box springs specially ordered to fit the antique frame because it was bigger than a king and smaller than a California king. The bed itself was extremely dark and masculine so I had girly-fied it as Alice called it when she first saw it with all white comforter and pillows paired with light gray walls with cream colored chairs and all cream colored furniture throughout the room. "That is one impressive bed." He said as that cocky smirk spread even bigger across his face.

I just shook my head. "Yeah it is. You ready?" I asked him as I pulled the lever that allowed the windows in my window seat to open so we could climb out.

"We're going out that way?" He asked pointing to the now open window. "Why not use the door?"

I nodded as I twisted around placing my feet on the deck boards outside. "This way is more fun. Come on, don't be a chicken." I told him as I stood up outside on my small balcony. I walked to the railing, gripping it in my hands as I looked down at all of my classmates goofing around in my back yard.

It took him a few minutes but he finally joined me out there with a shake of his head. "This is pretty awesome, Isabella." He said as he walked up behind me as I looked out over the railing. "It's like you own secret paradise up here." He whispered as he stepped up against my back, placing his hands on the railing on either side of mine essentially trapping me against the railing. "Do any other rooms open to this balcony?"

I felt my breath hitch at the feeling of being closed in so I tried to concentrate on things around me to calm myself down. I made myself take deep calming breaths as I said my abc's backwards in my head and trained my eyes on a girl who was running and laughing from some guys that were playfully chasing her. Before I realized it, my heart was beating a normal beat and I was breathing normally and completely okay with Edward standing behind me.

I felt his chuckle against my back before I heard it softly in my ear. "Good job, pretty girl. Are you okay now?" He whispered against my ear.

I smiled into the night air as I nodded. "Yeah, I think so." I whispered quietly so as to not alert anybody down below to our presence.

"I fully expected you to deck me, but I think you shocked both of us with that impressive performance. Are you the same shy scared young woman that had a panic attack at just the sight of me yesterday?" He said teasingly as he pushed away from the railing and me.

I turned around and nodded. "I am. I'm trying to turn over a new leaf, and you are a big part of that. Let's sit." I told him motioning to the mound of pillows sitting on top of three bean bag chairs.

"Bean bag chairs? Trying to recreate your childhood?" He said teasingly as he cleared one chair before flopping his lanky form down onto it. I laughed at him as I got my own bean bag situated across from him so we could look at each other while I had this extremely difficult but needed conversation.

"Comfy?" I asked him as I sat down in mine and taking a chance by stretching my sock clad feet across the space between us and propping them beside his legs on his bean bag.

He nodded as he squeezed my toes playfully. "I am. Are you?"

I smiled and nodded. "As comfortable as I can be considering what we are about to talk about." I told him honestly.

He just smiled at me as he placed his hand against my leg on the outside of my jeans below my knee. "Take your time, Isabella. I'm not going anywhere, I promise."

I smiled and nodded as I took a deep breath and just blurted out the hardest part. "My parents, big brother and his girlfriend were murdered four years ago next month protecting me from a psycho." I said in a rush.

Edward's eyes widened but his grip on my leg never tightened or faltered. "I'm sorry." He said softly and sincerely.

"Thanks. That is why I have to go to Washington next month. He's filed an appeal and I have to appear in court now that I am 18 years old. I have always did my part of the trials in the privacy of the judge's chambers but now that I'm 18 I can actually sit in the courtroom and testify about what I witnessed." I told him nervously because as smart as he was I knew he would question why I hadn't been able to sit in the courtroom as a minor.

"Why did you have to wait until you were 18?" He asked as I took a deep breath because he did just like I thought he would. Ask questions where things weren't clear.

"Because he was my teacher in eighth grade and my Uncle Marcus thought it better that I sit out of the courtroom until I was a legal adult or out of high school." I told him quietly. This would explain, hopefully, some of my resistance to getting close to people. One of the people that most kids are told they could trust turned my world upside down.

I felt Edward tense beside my legs and immediately began shaking my head. "Bella-" he started until I held my hand up.

"Please don't apologize. It's not your fault and I now know it's of no fault of my own. It happened and I have learned how to accept that in the best way I can." I pleaded with him softly.

He nodded in understanding. "What did he do to you, Bella?" He whispered as he leaned forward with his fingers clenched between his knees as he starred right at me with his penetrating gaze

I shook my head again. "It wasn't as bad as you probably think. My big brother, Mitchell, caught it before it got to bad but it only made things worse in the long run. Mitch caught Mr. Phillips giving me a hug after school one day that he thought was inappropriate. He told our parents that night about what he had witnessed and my parents went to the principal the next day which resulted in Mr. Phillips being suspended while an investigation took place. None of us understood the extent of his obsession with me until he was suspended from school. The police found hundreds of pictures of me, not all were taken at school, plastered to his bedroom wall. He disappeared for almost two weeks before he showed up one night while we were having a family dinner to celebrate Mitch and Josie's engagement." I spit out quickly.

"That's the night the murder's happened?"

I nodded. "Yeah, they were all trying to protect me from him. Dad quickly told Michael to take me upstairs and don't let anything happen to me. I was screaming at Mr. Phillips to please don't hurt my parents. Mitch picked me up and tossed me over his shoulder before grabbing Josie's hand and heading up the stairs as quick as he could. From over his shoulder I watched Mr. Phillips slice my mother's throat open and my father quickly rush to catch her dead body as it fell to the floor. I just caught a glimpse of him stabbing my father in the back as he was bent over my mom's lifeless body attempting to stop the blood from pouring out of her neck. At my blood curdling screams Mitch sped up his progress up the stairs and took us into our parents bedrooms, locking the door behind us." I sputtered out as I swiped at the steady stream of tears pouring from my eyes as I relived the worst night of my entire life.

Edward squeezed my toes gently to bring my attention back to the here and now. "You don't have to go through all of this tonight, pretty girl. This is supposed to be a fun and carefree night, not a sad and depressing one." He told me softly.

With a shake of my head I opened my mouth to finish my tale.


	10. Chapter 10

_A very short yet extremely important chapter..._

* * *

Chapter 10

EPOV

It took everything I had in me to not join her on her beanbag chair or pull her onto my lap so I could comfort her as she told the story of her past but she seemed to need to do this on her own so I just massaged her feet to let her know she wasn't alone.

"Once my brother had us locked in our parents room he quickly ushered me and Josie into the bathroom, shutting the door behind us. I heard him moving furniture around and later seen that he had barricaded the door to give us just a tiny bit more protection. I was a sobbing heartbroken mess but I remember Josie wrapping my mom's robe around me and getting me to hide in the linen closet behind a stack of towels. I nearly bit my lip off as I listened to the chaos going on around me while trying to be as quiet as a mouse, like Josie had told me. I watched through the warped door and the small space between the two stacks of towels as my brother joined Josie in the bathroom. He cupped her face in his hands giving her a sweet kiss before telling her that he loved her and he was sorry for this. It was mere seconds later that the banging started on the bathroom door and it soon slammed open. I heard several shots being fired rapidly and my brother clasped a hand over his chest before falling to his knees and then into the floor. I didn't actually see Josie or Mr. Phillips get shot but when I was pulled from the closet she was on the floor in a puddle of blood behind my brother's dead body." She said before taking a pausing breath as she closed her eyes and removing her feet from my chair suddenly.

"Pretty girl? You need to stop?" I asked her cautiously as I sat forward in my chair to take her hands into mine. She shook her head before opening her eyes and looking at me with the rawest eyes I had ever seen. "Come here." I told her softly as I leaned back in my chair tugging her hands with my slow motion. As she joined me in my beanbag chair her body went rigid as I settled her butt against the outside of my thigh and draping her legs over mine. As I ran my hand from her ankle to her knee I felt her body slowly relax against mine. "I'm here."

After a few quiet moments she reached down and pulled my hands up to rest in her lap, intertwining our fingers. "Mitchell got one shot off which hit Mr. Phillips in the stomach. According to the officer that pulled me from the linen closet, Mr. Phillips walked into every room in the upstairs looking for me before being scared off by the sirens. He was caught passed out from blood loss two blocks from our house by a guy walking his dog. Because of his fascination and obsession with me Uncle Marcus, who isn't actually an uncle but my father's partner and my godfather, refused to let me be in the courtroom." She said softly as she scooted around a bit our shared seat until she could lay her head on my chest. "Is this okay?" She asked softly.

Wrapping an arm tentatively around her shoulders I stroked her shoulder that had been barred by her too big sweater and wiggling around. "Is this okay?" I asked her as I shifted us more comfortably until she was basically laying against my chest with my arm around her shoulders.

"Yeah." She muttered softly before she heaved a large breath as she settled more naturally against me and let the silence envelop us. "My family was murdered when I was 13 years old. I spent the next six months under the care of child therapists to help deal with the trauma I had not only endured but also what I had seen. Once I was able stable again I finished the last half of my eighth grade year by tutors in my Uncle Marcus's house as Mr. Phillips trial proceeded. He was found guilty, of course, because the evidence was stacked against him. He was convicted of four counts of murder, one count of attempted kidnapping, breaking and entering, and stalking. He got four life sentences plus 27 years without the possibility of parole."

"So why are you having to testify again?" I asked softly as I pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

With a sigh she pushed away from me slightly to look at my face. "Because he's an idiot with an idiot attorney who thinks because I was 13 years old that I didn't see what I think I saw. Uncle Marcus thinks that Mr. Phillips simply wants to see me again."

"Who's going with you? Rose? Alice?" I asked cautiously as I pulled her back down against me, smiling when she came willingly.

"Nobody. I'm going by myself and staying at Uncle Marcus's house while I'm there. Plus, I want to go see my family while I'm there. It's going to be a rough time for me." She muttered softly into the material of my shirt.

"No way in hell. If they aren't going then I am." I told her firmly.

She pulled completely away from me and stood up to begin pacing from one end of the porch to the other while alternately nibbling on her fingernail and wringing her hands together. I simply sat on my beanbag chair and waited patiently while she processed what I had told her and what it meant. She suddenly spun around and stood in front of me with her hands on her hips. "You're crazy."

I nodded in agreement as I smiled up at her. "Crazy for you, pretty girl."

She huffed before turning around to resume her pacing. She paced and huffed and chewed on her lip for a few minutes before coming to sit back down across my lap with her phone in her hand. "If you're going to come to Washington with me then let's take a picture so Uncle Marcus will know we are a couple and coming together."

"Okay." I told her simply as I pulled her to rest against my chest as she pulled her camera up on her phone and held it out in front of us. Just before she tapped the screen I placed a gentle kiss to the top of her head. I couldn't help but smile against her hair as I heard the click of her phone. "Thank you for trusting me with your story." I told her as she tapped on her phone, presumably texting a message to her Uncle along with the picture.

"Thank you for being patient with me." She whispered as she relaxed against me.

The party lasted until after midnight which meant the cleanup lasted until around three in the morning. It was at that point that Emmett and I decided to head back to my house and crash for the night. Once I was comfortable in bed I sent Isabella the first of what would be multiple text messages during the length of our relationship.

 _Sweet dreams, pretty girl._

 ** _Is that going to be my nickname? I thought you hated nicknames!_**

 _Does it bother you, me calling you pretty girl? It's not nicknames that I hate, just shortened versions of our given names._

 ** _So you won't ever call me Bella? It was a nickname given to me by my brother because he couldn't pronounce Isabella when I was first born._**

 _I might could be persuaded into calling you by Bella if that's what you prefer._

 ** _It is. How about a bargain deal for calling me Bella instead of Isabella?_**

 _Just what did you have in mind, Isabella?_

 ** _Kissing you tonight was nice so how about a kiss for every time you call me Bella?_**

 _You may get tired of kissing around on me!_

 ** _Doubtful. Do we have a deal?_**

 _You have yourself a deal that we will seal tomorrow with your first pay-up, Bella!_

 ** _Come over for lunch and I'll pay-up._**

 _Name the time and I'll be there._

 ** _Considering it's almost 6 o'clock in the morning now, I should be alive again by 3 this afternoon so why don't we call it dinner instead?_**

 _Why don't we go out for dinner? Say 5 o'clock?_

 ** _People will see us together…_**

 _Are you ashamed of being with me? LOL_

 ** _No! I just figured you wouldn't want to be seen with me…_**

 _Why would you think that? You are a beautiful and amazing woman, Isabella! Nobody should ever be ashamed of being with you._

 ** _Just my insecurities I guess. Dinner out with my new boyfriend sounds amazing._**

 _It does sound pretty amazing. I'll be by to pick you up at 5 then._

 ** _Okay. See you then. Goodnight, slugger_**

 _Slugger? I like it! Goodnight pretty girl._


	11. Chapter 11

**So...I have bad news...I was injured at work and now my arm is in a cast with orders to not use it AT ALL for 4-6 weeks and this is the last of my pre-written chapters.**

* * *

Chapter 11

BPOV

The six weeks between prom and the last day of class seemed to fly by because I was either busy studying for my finals, spending time with Edward or our friends, or preparing to testify in the coming weeks. It was the last of those that had kept me busy for the past few days and now it was the night before we were set to fly to Washington so I could make sure that the psychopath that changed my life for the worst stayed put behind bars for the rest of his life.

"I'll see you bright and early in the morning, pretty girl." Edward whispered to me as he stroked the sides of my face as we stood on my front porch.

I shook my head. "Stay?" I whispered nervously because I really didn't want him to leave but I was also nervous about him staying the night because I had been waking up screaming for the past week from nightmares.

He cupped my face then instead of just stroking it. "I thought you would never ask." He told me as he pulled my face to his for a kiss. When we broke apart he whispered against my lips. "My stuff is in the trunk of my car."

I pushed playfully against his chest. "You think you're slick, don't you?" I teased him as he backed away towards the driveway where his car sat parked.

Once he pulled a small bag from the trunk of the car he made his way back up the steps to me. "Not slick, just hopeful. Plus, Alice has told me about your nightmares. I know you are stressing about this trip and your testimony."

I nodded in agreement as I opened the door and led him back into the house where we ran into Jasper, Alice, and Cassi coming down the stairs.

"Sleepover?" Jasper asked coyly as the small family descended the stairs all smiles and one sleepy baby.

"Bite me." Edward told him playfully before grabbing my hand and tugging me up the stairs eagerly ignoring the laughter that followed us all the way up.

An hour later Edward and I were laying side by side on my bed, on top of the blankets, in our pajamas just talking. We were just bouncing from one subject to another but currently the topic was college. "I want to be a Registered Nurse, like my mom was." I admitted softly as I scooted a bit closer to him in my massive bed that suddenly seemed way too big.

"Where are you going to go to school at?" He asked as he draped a hand gently over my waist not pulling or urging but just being.

"Mercer in Atlanta, Georgia. What about you?" I asked quietly because this was going to impact our futures tremendously.

"Georgia State in Atlanta for coaching and music." He told me with a smile.

I raised an eyebrow at him in curiosity because I found it funny that we both were planning to go to college in the same city hours away. "Really? You basically have your choices of colleges and you just happen to pick one several hours away in the same city where I'm going? Are you sure you didn't plan this somehow?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I've been accepted to several and one of them was GSU in Atlanta. It makes sense, considering our newly formed yet serious bond and relationship, now doesn't it?"

Pushing myself up to a sitting position I rested my elbows on my folded knees. "I don't want you to have regrets because of me, Edward. Our relationship is still so new that we shouldn't be changing our futures because of the other."

"I will have more regrets if I don't do everything in my power to give our relationship the best chance in the universe." He whispered as his arm tightened around my waist pulling me closer to him on the bed until just a few scant inches separated us. "I'm falling in love with you, Isabella." He whispered softly as his hand came up to tuck a few strands of my hair behind my ear before sealing our lips in a simple yet meaningful kiss.

When we broke apart for air I looked up at him with tears in my eyes. "Everybody who loves me always gets hurt somehow." I whisper brokenly as a few tears escape my eyes.

"I'm tough, I can handle whatever is thrown at me as long as you are by my side." He whispers back to me.

I make the final move that puts us flush together as I wrap my arms around his waist and snuggle into his warm chest. "I've already fallen in love with you."

"Hmm." He murmurs as we settle into the comfortable silence that descends after our heavy admissions.

"Do you want some breakfast while we wait?" Edward asked as we walked through the Atlanta airport to the lobby of where our next plane was to board. We had a 45 minute layover before boarding our second plane that would take us to Seattle where my Uncle Marcus was going to pick us up.

I shook my head as I sat down in one of the chairs in the lobby to wait until we were called to board. "No thanks. I don't think I could keep anything down anyways." I whispered softly.

Edward, being the amazing boyfriend and human being wrapped his arm around my shoulder pulling me into his side placing a kiss to the side of my head. "Would you want to live together when we come to Atlanta for college in a few months?" He asked suddenly after a few minutes of silence.

Pulling back from his warm comforting embrace I turned sideways in my chair so I could face him. "I hadn't thought about it since we just discussed college last night." I told him honestly.

"Understandable. Were you thinking of living on campus?" He asked softly.

Immediately I shook my head. "No way. While I am putting forth the effort of socializing more the idea of sharing my personal space with a complete stranger terrifies me. I was planning on just getting an apartment or even renting a small house while in Atlanta. Uncle Marcus suggested buying a small starter home instead of renting but I am not sure if I want to live in Atlanta for the rest of my life."

"You can always buy the house now and sell it if you decide to leave Atlanta after college. My mom actually suggested I do the same thing." He told me with his signature crooked smile in place.

"Hmm…" I told him with a smile of my own but before I could continue my thought we were called to board our second plane to finish out our 8 hour flight. "To be continued, I suppose." I told him as I grabbed my backpack.

Apparently Edward was anxious to continue our conversation because as soon as our plane levelled off in the sky he turned towards me with that expectant look on his face. With a shake of my head I smiled over at him. "You are absolutely insane if you want to buy a house together in the first six months of our relationship." I told him with a roll of my eyes.

"Maybe but when I know it's right I just go with it and baby you and I are definitely right." He told me cheekily.

"You are ridiculous." I told him as I dug my tablet out of my backpack. "Let's take a look at what's out there in Atlanta." I suggested with a smile as I pulled up the plane's wifi to connect to it.

When I pulled up the filter option of the housing website I had logged onto a whole new conversation came up. How many bedrooms? Price range? Updated or needs work? After going back and forth we finally settled on a $250,000 max price, 3 bedrooms max, and move-in ready, and a front porch to hang my porch swing where we shared our first kiss. Once we had the basics down it didn't take us long to find several that we absolutely loved from the pictures we could see. "Should we set up appointments to go see them on our way back home?" I asked as I scrolled through the pictures of a blue house with white trim that I really liked.

"Sure, why not? Just don't forget we have to be back at the school by five o'clock Monday afternoon. Maybe we could fly back home on Friday and spend a few days in Atlanta decompressing and checking out the houses?" He suggested softly.

"Sounds like a fantastic idea. I am set to get on the stand Wednesday morning and Uncle Marcus said it will probably take all day and possibly continue into Thursday depending on how I do emotionally." I explained softly.

Edward nodded in agreement. "Does it make me less of a man if I admit how nervous I am to meet this infamous Uncle Marcus?" He asked after a few quiet moments.

"Not at all. If anything it makes you more of one." I told him softly as I leaned over to kiss him on the cheek.

I spent the next hour setting up viewing appointments for the five houses we had actually agreed that we both liked. It was only when the pilot announced that we would be arriving in Seattle in approximately 30 minutes that the butterflies in my stomach made their appearance again. With a heavy sigh I stored my tablet back into my backpack before stuffing it back under my seat behind my legs and turned to look out the tiny window. "It sucks coming back here." I muttered under my breath.

"I can only imagine. Will you take me with you when you go visit your family?" Edward asked softy as he stroked the skin of my hand softly.

Turning my hand over I threaded my fingers through his and gave his hand a squeeze. "Of course. I can even show you the house that I grew up in. Uncle Marcus still owns it in case I ever want to return home."

"How many houses do you own?" Edward asked smartly.

"None officially because Marcus was waiting for me to graduate high school before signing the deeds over to me." I told him with my eyebrow raised in challenge.

He copied my movement and raised his own eyebrow at me. "How about unofficially?"

"Three." I told him with a smile before turning to face the window once again.

"And you're concerned about buying a house while you attend college? And you called me the crazy one in this relationship." Edward teased me playfully.

"This will be the first house I've ever picked out on my own. The three I currently have are all family homes that I inherited way too early in life. I've unofficially owned them since I was 13." I explained without turning to face him. "I have the house I live in now which was my mom's childhood home, I have the house my parents picked out in Forks, and I also have their vacation home in Florida that I haven't stepped foot in since the last time we went there together on vacation."

"Maybe we should go. As a senior trip." Edward suggested softly as he brought our joined hands to his mouth placing a soft kiss to our joined fingers.

"You're just full of good suggestions today aren't you?"

"Yep."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

EPOV

Since Bella was going to show me around her childhood home town, we decided to rent a car from the airport instead of having her Uncle miss work to pick us up. The trial was being held in Seattle according to Bella but she was actually raised up about 3 hours north. We would be staying with her Uncle Marcus at his home in Seattle, he moved from Forks after Bella's family had been murdered. "How does it feel to be back here?" I asked Bella as we walked hand in hand towards the car rental counter.

"Unsettling." She murmured as she looked around the airport with wide eyes. "So much has changed since the last time I was here five years ago." She said as she squeezed my hand and gave me a small smile.

I simply squeezed her hand in return as I stepped up to the counter and got our rental car for the next five days since we were planning to leave Seattle and head for Atlanta on Friday. "You want to drive or just give directions?" I asked her as we loaded our suitcases into the trunk of the car.

"Drive. Maybe it will help keep me focused on the here and now." She told me softly as she took the keys from my hand.

Placing a gentle kiss to the side of her head, I headed for the passenger door without a single word. While we were here, she was the leader and I was the follower until she needed me to lead. Within thirty minutes of us leaving the busy airport we were pulling up to what looked like a marina for both boats, yachts, and house boats lining either side of a expansive wooden deck. "Your Uncle Marcus lives on a boat?" I asked softly as she parked the car.

"Apparently so. This is the address he gave me. I thought it was an apartment or condo building. The address says its Lot K." She told me as she showed me the address she had typed into the GPS system before leaving the airport.

Leaning across the seat I turned her face to mine for a soft kiss. "What do we do now?" I asked softly after a few minutes of us looking out at the marina.

"Let's go find the house. I have a housekey even though I've never been here before." She told me with a small smile. "Uncle Marcus told me to make myself at home until he gets off work around 5 which gives us a little bit of time to unpack and take in our surroundings."

With another small kiss, we hopped from the car and headed down the planked deck/dock that had posts with letters and mailboxes on either side. When we found the post that had the letter 'K' on it along with the name Marcus Volturi, we knew we were in the right spot. "This is impressive." I whispered as I stood behind Bella while we took in the impressive structure in front of us.

The house boat, or floating home as I think they were called now, was huge by normal standards. It was two stories tall with lots of windows on all sides, plants and trees stacked in planters around a massive deck that surrounded the house. "Yeah, it is. Shall we go in or go get our stuff first?" Bella asked as she leaned into my shoulder.

"Let's go find our rooms first and then we'll go get our stuff." She told me before grabbing my hand and tugging me to the front door.

We found a note on the island counter as we explored the bottom floor of the floating home.

 _Welcome home Izzy B!_

 _Considering everything that you are going to go through this week I set up the room on the first level for you and Edward to both share. If that's a problem, there is an extra bedroom upstairs for whoever wants it._

 _P.S. You might want to go grocery shopping unless you want to eat out all week!_

 _Love you girlie,_

 _Uncle Marcus_

Leaning back against the countertop I crossed my ankles and placed my hands on either side of my hips as I cocked my head towards Bella. "So…?"

She ducked her head as she fiddled with the note and cash laying beneath it while chewing on her bottom lip. "It was nice sleeping next to you last night." She mumbled so low I wouldn't have caught it if I wasn't really listening for her response.

"It was more like sleeping on top of me but I'm not complaining either way." I smirked in her direction which caused a beautiful blush to spread across her cheeks.

With a nod of her head and a deep breath she turned to face me with her head held high. "We'll share the downstairs room." She whispered with a small smile.

Reaching my hand out I tugged her against my body causing her to giggle which I smothered out as I slid my lips across hers. She had come so far since prom weekend and she always seemed to blow my socks off with how responsive she was to my touches. Like now, she took it upon herself to straddle my outstretched legs and place her hands on my hips with her fingers sliding beneath the t-shirt I wore. "Isabella…" I warned softly as I placed my hands on her hips, flexing my fingers gently.

"What?" She whispered huskily as she trailed kisses down my chin while her hands slid up my stomach.

"You're getting awfully brazen here, sweetheart. And I won't allow this to go any further than what we were doing at home. Which isn't this." I explained as I slid my hands up to catch her wrists and pull them from underneath my shirt much to my dismay but I didn't want the next step of our relationship to be taken because she was trying to escape the situation we would soon be facing.

With a heavy sigh she leaned her forehead against my chest as she wrapped her arms around my waist tightly. "Sorry." She mumbled against the fabric of my t-shirt.

Tipping her head back by cupping my palms around her cheeks I placed a gentle kiss to her lips. "Don't be sorry, just don't use me to forget about what we're here to do. Now, shall we find our room before going to get the groceries your uncle suggested?"

BPOV

Grocery shopping with Edward was NOT something we had done before and was a whole new experience. As I was picking out things to cook meals for the next couple of days Edward kept picking things he wanted off the shelves and tossing them in the cart. "Would you stop that?" I asked as I put the box of swiss rolls back onto the shelf he had just removed it from.

"What's wrong with swiss rolls?" He asked as he put the box back into the cart with a smile.

Shaking my head at him I pushed the cart forwards to the dairy section of the grocery store. "Are you planning to eat that whole box of swiss rolls in the few days that we are here?" I asked as I selected a half gallon of milk, butter, cheese, and sour cream.

"I'm sure you are going to need some comfort foods during the next few days." He said with a shrug of his shoulders. "And I know you like chocolate." Then he had the audacity to wink at me before tossing a roll of chocolate chip cookie dough into the basket too.

It took us another half hour to get enough stuff for at least two healthy meals a day for the next four days plus tonight. "Just so you know, if we move in together in Atlanta, the junk food will be kept to a minimum. I have lived on my own since I was 14 and you don't see a lot of junk food and quick fix stuff around my kitchen at home." I told him with a mock glare as we stood in the checkout line as the numerous amount of 'comfort foods' rolled down the conveyor belt.

"Yes ma'am." He mock saluted me causing us both to chuckle as we stepped up to the cashier to pay for our groceries.

Once we were back at the marina we made several trips to the house boat to get our groceries and suitcases inside. I was just placing the cooked shrimp into the skillet with the broccoli while Edward sat on a bar stool keeping me company when the front door opened and the alarm started beeping. Whirling around I spotted the impeccably dressed man that had saved me from my own demons. "Uncle Marcus!" I squealed as I rounded the island and ran into his outstretched arms.

As he hugged me so tightly my feet came off the ground. "You look fantastic, sweet girl." He whispered in my ear. "Is that your guy over there attempting to give us privacy while watching you like a hawk?"

I chuckled as he sat me back on my feet. "It is. He's pretty fantastic. Please don't go all macho overprotective guardian on him. He means a lot to me." I begged softly.

He nodded as he cupped my cheeks. "You love him. He passes. With flying colors." He ended our heart-warming embrace with a peck to my cheek before stepping around me towards my boyfriend who slid from his barstool where he had been keeping watch.

"You must be Edward." Uncle Marcus said as he extended a hand out for Edward to shake, which he did.

"I am indeed Edward and you must be the infamous Uncle Marcus that Bella has told me so much about." I told him as I stood from my bar stool and gave his hand a firm handshake. "It's so nice to finally meet you in person." I told him because we had talked a few times over the phone when he would call Bella and she would put it on speakerphone.

He smiled at me as he let my hand drop. "It's nice to finally meet the man that pulled my sweet girl from her self-imposed shell." With a pat on the shoulder before disappearing up the stairs. "Dinner smells delicious, by the way." He called over the railing as he stepped into his room.

I placed a kiss to Edward's cheek as I headed back towards the kitchen to finish our simple dinner of shrimp and broccoli stir-fry with a sweet and sour sauce to dip. "You passed the test." I said with a wink as I gave my sweet and sour sauce a stir.

"What test? I didn't know about any test." He said in a quick high pitched voice that let me on to the anxiety he was feeling all of a sudden.

"The parent test." I told him with a shrug of my shoulders. "He told me he would let me know the results once he met you in person and he just told me that you passed with flying colors." I explained as I began plating dinner onto the three plates I had sat out earlier.

As I slid the plates over to Edward he carried them to the table for me. "Well I guess that's a good thing since I'm crazy about you."

"Mhmm."

That evening was spent in laughter and excitement as Edward and Uncle Marcus really got to know one another and I soaked up all the good energy they were pushing out. But now it was nearing time for us all to turn in for the night and that meant it was time to discuss the plans for tomorrow. "What time am I needed in court tomorrow?" I asked during a lull in the conversation between the two men.

Uncle Marcus sat forward then with his hands clasped between his knees and a serious look on his face. "About that…" He started but paused to reach over and grasp one of my hands. "My attempt at getting his line of sight of you blocked was denied as was my attempt to allow you to testify in an empty court room and have the recording played back for the jurors. I've tried everything I can to keep you from facing that sick bastard but since your testimony is what this whole appeal is about the judge has held steadfast. Her opinion is that while you were a minor at the time of the tragic event, you are now a legal adult with no immediate threat to your livelihood. With that being said…" He said with a shake of his head before looking at me and continuing. "…the actual appeal trial starts at 9 a.m. and you are the first witness on the defense docket so you will need to be there a little early so you can be shown to the private room I have secured for you because I know how draining and tiring this is going to be for you." He explained softly while squeezing my hand in his steadfast support while Edward squeezed the other.

I nodded in understanding before squeezing both of their hands back. "Okay. Any particular way I need to dress? How long do you think this will take?" I asked softly.

"You dress however you feel comfortable but please take into consideration this is a very public trial." Uncle Marcus told me with a smile. "As for how long your part will take…I really couldn't tell you. I wouldn't make any plans for tomorrow because his lawyer is probably going to cover every single word of your previous testimony. It won't be as simple as a retelling of the events, like last time."

"Simple? You call going over the murder of my entire family, simple!?" I lashed out in irritation.

Uncle Marcus quickly shook his head before placing his hands on my knees while Edward wrapped his arm around my shoulders. "Hey now, don't start that bullshit because you know I don't think it was simple or easy at all but compared to what is about to happen it was. You weren't cross examined last time because of your mental state and the fact that you were a minor. This time you will be. As a matter-of-fact, most of the questions will most likely come from their team, not yours."

Taking a deep breath I leaned forward to pull Marcus into a hug. "I'm sorry. Is Candace going to be there tomorrow?" I asked softly of my therapist that helped me come somewhat to terms with what had happened that night and had helped me through the dark and fuzzy times that came after.

Uncle Marcus pulled back and leaned back in his seat. "She's been retired for a few years now but has agreed to be there through this whole thing. Just for you." He told me with a wink.

"Good. I want to take a trip to Forks before we leave on Friday to introduce Edward to the family and show him around." I explained softly.

"You going to go by the house? Pastor Webber and his wife have been keeping an eye on the place and go in twice a month to air it out and give it a quick wipe down." He explained with a small smile.

Sinking back onto the couch and into the crook of Edward's shoulder I heaved a heavy sigh. "I'm not sure I'm ready for that but then again maybe that's what I need to do."

"I'll pull the keys out of the safe just in case you want to stop and if you don't it's no big deal." He explained as he stood from the chair he had been occupying since we settled in the living room. "It's time for this old man to his the sack. We've got a busy hard day tomorrow, Izzy B." He whispered against the top of my head as he placed a gentle kiss there before clapping Edward on the shoulder and disappearing upstairs.

After a few minutes of Edward and I just sitting there in silence he pulled my legs over his so that I was stretched across his lap. "You okay?" He asked me softly as he fiddled with my fingers.

I shook my head because there was no point in hiding how tough this was on me from this man who seemed to have a sixth sense about when I was lying or trying to hide something. "No but I have to do this. For my parents, brother, and Josie. They deserve this justice and so do I." I told him firmly.

He leaned over to place a kiss to my forehead before pulling back. "Yes, you do. If it helps tomorrow, just look at me and kind of ground yourself. When this hellish few days is over we are going back to Georgia to start our lives together. When we have kids one day, they deserve to know what kind of people raised their mother to be such an amazing, kind, and strong person."

"Kids?" I asked as I looked up at his face with wide twinkling eyes.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

EPOV

Watching my brave girl walk into that courtroom with her head held high made me smile as I took my seat in the first row of benches behind Marcus and the other attorney's. Marcus leaned back a little and motioned for me to come forward. As I did, he whispered in my ear. "Is she going to be able to get through this?"

I simply shrugged my shoulders because nobody really knew. She had prepared herself, both mentally and physically, as much as she possibly could. "I hope so."

"Have I told you how thankful I am that you are here for her?"

Smiling at him I leaned back into my seat as the bailiff swore Bella in before motioning for her to take her seat. "Just a few times but it's still nice to hear."

When Bella's eyes met mine I blew her a kiss and winked at her which brought that beautiful blush to her cheeks that I was quickly falling in love with. That prick's attorney's were brutal and ruthless as they made Bella go over that night in painstaking detail. I just about came out of my seat when I saw the tears trail down her cheeks but Marcus reached a hand back to squeeze me on the shoulder. "She's got this. Those tears are going to hurt them and help us. Trust me."

BPOV

"Hi, sweetheart." Marcus said with a smile as he approached the box where I had once again taken a seat after a short lunch recess.

The smile that came to my face was natural and as real as they came. "Hi." I whispered back to him as I took a steadying breath. I had known that this day would be hard but I had never imagined it to be this difficult.

"Can you explain to these people what our relationship is?" He asked with a wink as he handed me a handkerchief from his pocket.

With a nod and smile I opened my mouth to speak loudly and clearly. "You were best friends and partners with my father before I was born and after. You were given the privilege of being named my godfather upon my entrance into this world. Once my parents and brother were murdered, you became my legal guardian. But you are so much more than just a guardian, you were a beacon of hope in the darkness that came after that awful night."

"Thank you, Bella. Now, it's time to dig into the nitty gritty and nasty details, you ready?" He asked softly.

I nodded and took a deep breath. "Yes."

I'm not sure which was the hardest part, retelling the events of that horrific night or feeling that creep's eyes on my every move but thankfully after just one day, my part was done unless his attorney's called me back for more questions. "You may be excused, Miss Swan. Thank you for your cooperation. And I am so very sorry for the loss of your family." The judge told me kindly as Uncle Marcus took his seat at the attorney's table.

"Thank you." I told the judge as I stood from the witness box and made my way back across the courtroom to where Edward was waiting on me just behind the short wall.

"You will pay for this you stupid bitch, and I will get what is MINE!" Mr. Phillips said as I finally looked at him and smiled at the sight of him in his orange jump suit and handcuffs.

Marcus jumped up at the same time Edward did and they both got me out of the courtroom before I could collapse while the bailiffs and prison guards dealt with Mr. Phillips. "Why me? Why is he so infatuated with me? Will I ever be free of him?" I muttered to the two men who escorted me to the private room Marcus had secured for me.

"You are free of him, sweetheart. He is never getting out of prison. Especially after that outburst in the there." Marcus assured me as he helped guide me into one of the chairs in the room.

"Are you sure?" I muttered brokenly.

"Absolutely. There was not a single hole in your story and you did amazing in that courtroom so his appeal will be denied and he will spend the rest of his life in a maximum security prison. I'm also going to ask that all of his communication be strictly monitored so that he will have no way of keeping track of you." Marcus told me with a firm nod of his head. "Now, why don't you kids get out of here and go give Charlie, Renee, Mitch, and Josie the good news, huh?"

I nodded as I gripped Edward's hands tightly in my own. "Yeah, that sounds like a great idea. Then I think we're going to head back to Georgia a few days early. There's a few properties we want to look at and I would like to tour the college campus while we are already there."

"Properties? As in buying a house together?" Marcus asked with a raised eyebrow.

With a huge smile on my face and a squeeze to Edward's hands I stood from the chair. "Yep, grabbing life by the horns and going for it. It's beyond time. My parents and Mitch would never have wanted me to live the life of a recluse. They died to save my life and now it's time to honor them for their sacrifice by actually living my life instead of just doing the motions."

"Hmm. I still have a fatherly duty to discuss this with the two of you further tonight. Over dinner. 8 o'clock. At Sherman's. Don't be late." He said firmly before leaving the room.

Edward and I looked at each other with wide eyes. "What do you think he's going to say tonight?" Edward asked cautiously as he threaded our fingers together and led us out of the courtroom.

"Despite his appearances, he's got very old fashioned values." I told him with a shake of my head as we descended the courthouse steps until we were stopped by several reporters calling my name paired with a variety of questions.

"Isabella, how do you feel knowing that the man who murdered your entire family may go free?"

"Isabella, how did it feel to face the man who killed your family?"

"Isabella, do your harbor any resentment towards Mr. Phillips?"

I held my hand up until they all got quiet. "I have complete faith in the judicial system of the great state of Washington to do right by both me ad Mr. Phillips. He will get what he deserves and my family will get the justice they deserve. Facing that man today only made me stronger, it gives me hope for the future, and the strength to live the life that my family so selflessly gave their lives for. Do I wish I could have my parents, brother, and his fiancée back? Absolutely. There is not a day that goes by that I don't miss them or look for them when I'm lost and need advice or want to share my achievements with. There is no room in me to have any feeling towards Mr. Phillips, he doesn't deserve that from me and he won't get it. Now, if you don't mind I have someone I need to introduce my parents and brother to. Thank you." I told the slew of microphones and people standing before me before grabbing Edward's hand and side-stepping around them.

Making a detour to the boat house to change out of our court clothes and into some jeans and t-shirts, we headed out of Seattle towards my hometown that I hadn't been to in years.

A few hours later, I took a deep breath as Edward pulled the car into the parking lot of the small cemetery where my family rested. "You okay to do this?" Edward asked as he turned the car off and turned to face me.

With a nod I leaned over the console to kiss his lips gently. "I don't know but we're here and we're going to try. I'm just grateful that I have you here to help me through this. I think my mom would have loved you. Loved how you are with me." I told him with a small smile.

"What about your dad and brother?"

"I was a daddy's girl through and through so my dad most likely would have been cleaning his guns on the kitchen table the first time you dared to come over. My brother probably would have threatened your manhood if you ever did wrong by me. But they would have eventually come around and love you too. Especially when they saw how much I loved you." I whispered softly as I stroked the soft skin of his cheeks.

His smile was breathtaking. "You love me, huh? That's good because I am so in love with you it hurts sometimes."

The smile that blossomed across my face surely had to match his. "Then you should be okay to meet the family." I whispered as I placed a soft kiss to his lips.

EPOV

Watching my beautiful brave girl crumble to the ground at the foot of her parents and brother's graves made my heart ache something horrible but I didn't know how to help her through this. Sitting on the ground beside her sob jerking body I ran my fingers through her long hair and ran my hand up and down her back to just let her know I was here for her. "It's going to be okay, baby, I'm here." I whispered as I coaxed her into my lap to get her off the cool ground.

"But they're not. And it's all because of me." She sobbed against my throat.

Wrapping my arms around her slender body I tightened my grip on her. "That's not true, and you know it. They live on every day, through you. I never got to meet them but I am almost certain that the best parts of them make up the best parts of you." I told her because that is what I felt deep in my soul. "Now, why don't you dry your pretty face and introduce me to your family? Personally, I like my manhood and I am rightfully terrified of guns." I told her with a smirk.

She smiled at that comment and sat up in my lap as she wiped her face clean of the tears that had spilled. "Momma, Daddy, Bubba, I would like you guys to meet the man I plan to spend the rest of my life with, Edward. Edward, this is my family." She said with a broad smile.

We spent the next hour having 'conversations' with her family before a shadow fell over us halting us mid-sentence. "Isabella, sweetheart, is that you?"


	14. Chapter 14

**Finally decided to get back to this story. This is simply a repost of the last chapter to let you guys know that I have resumed working on this story and will hopefully have it finished within the next few weeks. Probably no more than 5-6 chapters left but time will tell. My characters tend to create take over and determine the end.**

* * *

Chapter 14

EPOV

I watched as my girls head lifted up towards the stranger with a breathtaking smile spreading across her face. "Pastor Webber!" She called out as she scrambled out of my hold and into the spread arms of the elderly man that had interrupted our time with her family. Pulling myself from the ground I dusted off my jeans before watching Bella pull back and place a kiss against the elderly man's cheek before coming to stand beside me. "Edward, this is my childhood friend, Angela's, dad and also the only pastor of Forks worth mentioning. Pastor Webber, this is my boyfriend Edward Cullen. I was introducing him to my family." She said with a smile on her face the entire time.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. Bella has told me some of the trouble she and your daughter used to get into." I said as I reached a hand out to shake the pastor's hand.

The man chuckled as he shook my hand. "I'm not sure who was the instigator, sweet and innocent Isabella or my sweet and mischievous daughter, but those two girls were determined to keep all of us parents on our toes. Would you two like to come inside for a little bit?" He said motioning to the old white clapboard style church that sat to the side of the cemetery.

I looked to Bella for guidance here because this was her show an I was just along for the ride. When she looked at me for guidance I simply shrugged my shoulders. "It's up to you, pretty girl."

She popped up on her toes to place a kiss to my cheek. "On that note, we would love to come in for a chat. Maybe you can tell me what Angela has been up to since I left town." Bella said before grabbing my hand and following Pastor Webber into the church.

Just as we were about to step through the double doors my phone rang. "Ya'll go ahead, I'm going to take this call and then I'll come in." I told them as I showed Bella the display that showed my mom's name and picture.

"Okay." Bella said with a nod before disappearing through the doors while I took a seat on the steps of the old church.

"Hi Mom." I said answering the phone with a nervous smile.

My mom didn't waste any time with pleasantries. "Edward Anthony Cullen, do you want to explain to me…."

BPOV

Stepping through the second set of double doors of the church I had attended faithfully as a child caused my breath to hitch as I felt tingles raced along the nerve endings of my arms and down my back. "Oh." I said startled and taking a step back before gaining my bearings once again.

"You okay, sweetheart?" Pastor Webber asked as he placed a calming hand on my elbow.

I nodded as I took a deep breath. "Just got a chill when I stepped inside." I whispered as I took in the church that hadn't changed a bit since the last time I was here before that horrific night that changed everything.

"Maybe that is your parents and brother's way of saying 'welcome home' and 'I love you'." He said as he guided me to the pew mid way's up on the left side of the walkway that my family had always sat in. "This okay with you?" He said motioning to the pew.

With a deep breath I nodded before sliding onto the bench and down to the spot that I had always sat in. Looking at the back of the bench before me, I gasped as the tears sprang to my eyes at the sight that sat before me. "Why?" I asked as I took out the faded coloring book that I remember putting there after the last service I ever attended in this church and began flipping through the colored pages.

"Because I always knew you would come back home when you were ready." He told me as he crossed his ankles and relaxed into the pew where my father had always sat.

"How?" I asked as I placed the coloring book back where it belonged and ran my fingers gingerly over the plaque that had been mounted to the back of the pew in front of me. "Why would you save these seats for me? This spot?" I asked as I felt the tears pour down my cheeks.

Pastor Webber handed me a handkerchief before explaining. "Honey, I didn't do this by myself. My sweet and mischievous daughter started it. The weekend following that horrific night actually. When her and her mom came in to take their seats for the service that Sunday she had a fit when she saw the Jenson's sitting here. She began screaming at them that this spot was where the Swans sat and nobody else."

I chuckled because I could picture my once best friend making a scene over something as simple as the section of pew my family had sat in for the previous 20 years. "I can see her doing something like that."

"She stated that her best friend would come back and that her seat would be there waiting on her when she did." He told me with a smile. "A few weeks later the Mardsen's had this plaque made in honor of your family's sacrifice and we had it mounted right here so that my darling girl wouldn't make a scene anymore. Every year on the anniversary of their deaths this section of pew is filled with flowers and stuffed bears in remembrance of what was lost that tragic day."

"Wow." I said as I heard the doors creak open pulling my attention to the back of the church where the man I loved was standing with a crying girl on his arm that I instantly recognized. "Angela?" I whispered as Pastor Webber stood up allowing me to climb from the pew.

He pulled me into a hug before placing a kiss to the top of my head. "I called her. Figured you might like to see a friendly face."

I nodded up at him. "Thank you." I whispered to him as I heard Angela sobbing at the back of the church with Edward.

"Anytime. Welcome home, Isabella." He told me as he motioned for his daughter to come on.

We collided midways down the aisle in a tangle of limbs as we held each other tightly. "Y'alls old Sunday School room is open, Ang, if you girls want some privacy."

I gripped Edward's hand as we reached him. "I love you."

"I love you too, pretty girl. Have fun." He winked at me.

Instead of going into the classroom her father had so kindly unlocked for us, we headed out back to the swings that had been there our entire lives. "You look happy, Izzy." Angela commented as we set a gentle swaying rhythm to the swings.

"I am for the first time since that awful night. It's been a long trying ride to get here though." I told her with a shake of my head.

She reached over and linked our fingers together across the distance. "There was never a doubt in my mind that you would come back home one day. I've missed you and have so much to tell you." She said with a sad smile.

With a squeeze to her fingers I dropped her hand and gripping the chains of the swing I pushed my feet against the ground to gain some momentum. "This isn't home anymore, Ang. Georgia is my home now. Edward and I are going to look at houses in Atlanta when we fly back. We both are attending college there. This will always be my childhood home but it just doesn't feel like home home anymore."

"That's completely understandable but this place will always draw you back because this is where your memories with your family are. Trust me, I know." She said with a sad smile.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked curiously.

With a heavy sigh she toed the dirt beneath her sneaker. "I was pregnant two years ago. I found out on my sixteenth birthday, actually. Happy sweet 16! You're about to disappoint your entire family and become a teenage mother to boot." She said with a shake of her head.

"You have a baby?" I asked incredulously because despite her father's lack of knowledge about who instigated most of the trouble we found ourselves in, Angela had always been the good girl out of the two of us.

She shook her head. "I lost my Brielle when I was six months pregnant. There was nothing the doctors could do for her, she was gone by the time we got to the hospital. When the cramps woke me up out of my sleep I just knew that something bad was happening, my mom and dad prayed over both of us while they rushed me to the ER but it was useless. I lost my faith for a while but eventually I found my way back to it. Now, I am drawn to the places that remind me of having her in my stomach. The park where I first felt her move. The cereal aisle in the grocery store where I felt her first kick. Here. Where I said my final goodbyes to her. Your loss is different than mine but at the end of the day, loss is loss."

"I'm so sorry, Ang. I had no idea." I whispered as I swiped the tears from my cheeks at hearing the heartache in her voice as she retold the story.

She looked over at me with a small smile on her face. "I suppose it was all part of God's plan for me."

"Doesn't make it suck any less though." I said softly.

"No it doesn't."

We swung in silent companionship until Edward and Pastor Webber stepped out the back door of the church chit chatting, both with smiles on their faces. As Edward and I said our goodbyes, it was with a promise to keep in touch from me and a promise to keep his word from Edward. The latter of the two caused me to raise my eyebrow in curiosity to which Edward just shrugged his shoulders before guiding me back to the car. "Edward!" I said in annoyance at being blatantly ignored.

"You will find out when the time is right, I promise. Now, will you please get in the car so we can get back to Seattle for our dinner date with Marcus?" He pleaded with me as we stood in the open space provided by the car and the open door.

Rolling my eyes at him I pressed a quick kiss to his lips before getting in the car. "You're lucky you're so damn good looking." I teased him as I fastened my seat belt.

EPOV

I was surprised when we got back to Marcus's to find him sitting at the breakfast bar snacking on a bowl of grapes. "Thought we were supposed to meet you at the restaurant?" I asked as Bella practically ran to the bathroom since I had playfully refused to pull over when we only had 15 minutes to go.

"I cut out early after I received a phone call from Pastor Webber." He told me with a smirk as he popped a grape into his mouth.

Nodding in his direction I snatched a grape from his bowl before popping it into my mouth. "And? You going to tell me no?" I asked as I leaned against the counter crossing my ankles to show that I wasn't really worried about his answer though I had to bite my tongue to keep from puking my guts out.

Marcus shook his head. "No, I'm not. Don't you think it's too soon though? You've only been dating a few months."

"Love doesn't keep a time table. My parents went from strangers to husband and wife within two months and have been happily married for 25 years. Didn't Charlie and Renee get married the summer after they graduated high school? Mitch and Josie were getting married right after high school too, right?" I asked saying basically the same thing I had told my mom earlier today when she called freaking out over the fact that I had gotten my grandmother's ring from my dad before we left town.

"You put up a good argument, son. Just know that if you ever break that girls heart, I know people who will break your knee caps. Understood?" He said standing from the bar stool and cracking his knuckles over his head.

"Understood." I told him as I headed down the hall where I found my girl standing in the middle of our room wrapped in nothing but a towel. "You trying to kill me, beautiful?" I whispered as I stepped into the room, shutting the door behind me.

She whirled around to face me with wide eyes. "No. I didn't think you would be done talking with Marcus so soon. I was hoping to get a quick shower before dinner."

Walking towards her I pulled her body against mine, placing my lips against hers, and sunk my fingers deep into her long hair. "Maybe I can join you? Help you wash your back?" I asked when we broke apart because the need for oxygen became undeniable.

"We've never….I never… Will you…" She trailed off nervously as her fingers fidgeted with the hem of my t-shirt.

"Nothing will happen that you don't want to happen. I promise. Just an innocent shower." I told her peeking a glance at my watch. "Plus we don't have time for me to ravish you if we are going to make dinner on time."


	15. Chapter 15

**It's back! And with a bang!**

Chapter 15

BPOV

"Okay." I whispered to Edward as I slid my hands beneath his t-shirt, pushing it up his chest as I trailed my fingertips over his stomach and chest.

Without saying a word he held his arms up so I could tug the shirt off his arms before his hands went to the hem of my own shirt. "I love you so damn much." He whispered as he tugged my shirt off my body, tossing it to the floor to join his.

"Mmm. I love you too. More than I ever thought possible." I whispered as my fingers began undoing his belt and the button of his jeans.

"I want to spend the rest of my life loving you, Isabella." Edward whispered as he tugged the button of my jeans loose. "I can't imagine ever loving someone else the way that I love you." Down came the zipper. "You are the other half my heart has been looking for." He knelt on the floor to tug my jeans over my hips and off my feet. "I want to be able to call you mine forever, Isabella. Can I do that?" He asked as he gripped my hands in his as he looked up at me and I looked down at him.

I nodded as tears slipped down my cheeks. "Yes." I whispered as I squeezed his fingers because this situation was enormous.

"You'll marry me?" He asked softly as he tugged one hand free to dig around in pants pocket. He finally pulled his hand free and showed me the beautiful ring tied to a strip of leather.

"Yes, I'll marry you." I whispered as I sank to the floor in front of him holding a trembling hand out so he could slide the ring onto my finger. "When did you get this?" I asked as I took in the ring. It was simple in design but absolutely gorgeous with the square diamond on top and tiny ones surrounding the entirety of the band.

"It's my grandmother's. I got it from my Dad before we left home." He explained as he placed a kiss to my finger, over the ring that now adorned it.

I gasped because I had only met his parents a handful of times, basically in passing. "Your parents don't even know me, Edward."

"But they trust my judgement and they understand your hesitance so they are letting you guide the pace. Just like you are in control of our relationship progress." He explained as he stood back up. "Now about this shower?" he asked with a wink as his hands slid around behind me to fiddle with my bra strap.

With a smirk of my own, I slid my hands down his waist and tugged his zipper down, allowing his pants to fall to the floor with a little guidance from my fingers. "I think we may need to celebrate a little bit while we're in there. Do you agree?" I asked bravely as he stepped out of his jeans leaving us standing in our underwear.

My bra came loose with a quick twist of his fingers. "I agree one hundred percent." He growled as he tugged my bra off to join our pile of clothing on the floor. I knew that we would find our own way to celebrate our engagement without pushing the boundaries we had already set for this trip. I was confident in him and me.

When Edward and I walked into the restaurant, hand in hand, I was surprised to see a woman sitting at the table with Uncle Marcus. "I wonder who that is?" I whispered to Edward as he told the hostess that we had spotted our party.

"Why don't we go over and find out?" Edward snarked.

I rolled my eyes at him as we walked over to the table. "Keep up the smartass comments and I'll give you back this ring."

"No you won't. You love it and you love me." He said confidently as we approached the table, stopping Marcus and his woman friend mid-sentence.

Without answering Edward, because he already knew that everything he said was true. "Isabella. Edward." Uncle Marcus said as he stood from the table. "I wanted to introduce you two to someone special before you leave town tomorrow." He said as he placed a kiss to my cheek and shook Edward's hand. When he pulled back he glanced at my face before returning my small smile. "This is Didyme. We've been seeing each other for several months now. She works at the firm with me." He rattled out nervously.

"Is this how I was when I introduced Edward the other day?" I giggled before turning to face the brunette that had stood from the table as well. "I'm Isabella, Marcus's niece. And this is my fiancée, Edward." I said as I extended a hand towards her over the square table.

She smiled brightly at me. "It's a joy to actually meet you in person though I feel like I know you already from the way Mark gushes about you and from the pictures he's shown me. You can call me DeeDee, most people do. I will forever curse my mother for giving me such a horrid name."

"It's beautiful and I will warn you that this one has a thing for given names." I said thumbing a thumb in Edward's direction as he extended his own hand out for DeeDee to shake.

He smiled over at her as he shook her hand. "It's nice to see Marcus be nervous for a change. Thank you for that pleasure, Didyme." He said, pronouncing her name perfectly.

"You suck." I told him as we all took our seats now that introductions were over.

For once, he acted his age and stuck his tongue out at me. "You love me though."

"Enough." Marcus scolded playfully as he smiled over at us. "Congratulations, by the way. I guess I can toss all my speeches out the window now." He said as he tipped his glass of water at me and Edward.

Extending my had over to him I couldn't help but bounce a little in my seat. "No speeches necessary. Mom always said life lessons are best learned by experiencing them." I told the table as Marcus ran his thumb over my knuckles as he pulled my hand over for his girlfriend to see.

"She did always say that, didn't she?" He asked as he brushed a kiss against my knuckles before releasing my hand once and for all. I knew that was his way of blessing our future. "Any idea on the when and where? If you follow in the pattern Edward pointed out earlier then I'm sure it's going to be a lot sooner than I would like.

With a quick glance between Edward and myself I smiled over at my Uncle. "June 7th at the church in Forks. Pastor Webber is going to officiate and I was hoping you would walk me down the aisle." I told him with a giddy bounce in my seat. "Will you?"

Marcus returned my smile before reaching over to grasp my hand in a quick squeeze. "It would be my pleasure to do that honor for your father."

The next morning on our flight from Seattle to Atlanta, Edward and I finished hashing out the details of our wedding. Our colors were going to be turquoise and silver. Edward would wear a traditional suit but no tuxedo. I would wear a typical wedding dress. We were having nobody stand up as our bridesmaids and groomsmen. Only friends and close family were to be invited.

Only when we landed in Atlanta did it really hit home how crazy our summer was going to be. Graduation. Buying a house. Getting married. Taking a honeymoon. Enrolling in college. Moving to a new town. Finding jobs. Just thinking about it was starting to stress me out. "Edward, maybe we should push back—" My words were stopped by his lips.

"No." He growled against my lips before releasing them to grab our bags off the luggage carousel. "We've got this."

"You sure? It's so much to do in just 3 months." I grumbled as I grasped the handle of our small rolling suitcase while he grabbed everything else.

He smiled over at me. "We've got this. Together."

"Okay." I said, trusting him one hundred percent as I followed him out of the airport. Tomorrow morning we would start our first ever house search and I was kind of excited to see the houses we had seen on the computer screen. "Maybe I can do a little shopping Sunday if we find our house tomorrow."

"Sounds like a plan I can get behind." He said with a wink tossed over his shoulder.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

EPOV

"Rise and shine, slugger." Bella whispered against my ear as she scratched her nails gently down my sides as she lay sprawled on my bare chest.

With a groan I wrapped my arms around her waist and rolled us over until we lay side by side. "Do we have to?" I muttered against her throat as I slipped a leg between her two and slipped a hand down to tug her leg up over my hip. "This is so much better than looking at houses all day."

Bella chuckled as she placed a kiss against my jaw that needed to be shaved this morning since I didn't shave yesterday. "This is so much better but unless we plan to spend our first semester at college in married housing I think we need to do the adult thing and get out of this bed." She muttered between kisses against my jawline and neck.

"Keep doing that and it's gonna get you in trouble." I growled as I slid my hand from her knee on my hip up her bare thigh until I reached the edge of the boxers she wore to bed.

She giggled but stopped anyways. "We have less than an hour before we are supposed to meet the realtor at the first house." She said as she pulled back to look at my face. With gentle fingers she brushed my hair off my face and out of my eyes as I blinked my eyes open to gaze at her.

I repeated her gesture with my own gentle fingers. "I really hope this first house lives up to our hopes and expectations." I told her softly as I leaned forward placing a gentle kiss to her lips.

"Me too." I replied as I scraped my blunt nails against her scalp causing her to purr contently.

While we had been in Seattle I had asked my mom to be our realtor to negotiate all of our offers and she had agreed quickly and actually seemed hurt that I actually asked. She had suggested we organize the houses from most likely to least likely so we didn't spend unnecessary time house hunting. So our first house was the one we liked the best in the photos we saw on the internet. "We need to get going." Bella reminded me as she lay contently against my side.

"I know." ;.

We followed the directions on the GPS to the first house but the smile that\ lit up Bella's face kept distracting me. "Edward! Pay attention!" She giggled when she saw me looking at her again when I had stopped at a stop sign causing the car behind us to honk in annoyance.

"Sorry." I said as I turned and continued on our way.

Her giggle bounced around the interior of the car. "No you're not."

I simply shrugged as I pulled to a stop along the edge of the road in front of the house that we had seen online. "We're here."

"Yay!"

Watching Bella kneel on the hardwood floor to check the plumbing caused me to grin while the realtor simply rolled her eyes and left the room. "I'll be in the living room if you two need me to answer any questions."

"Okay. Thanks." I told her as I pulled open each and every drawer and cabinet in the kitchen to check for any shortcuts taken by the previous owners. It was something my mom told me to do so I done it while Bella checked the plumbing. "What do you think?" I asked Bella as I shut the last drawer in the kitchen.

She stood up and dusted off her jeans. "Frankly, the cosmetic upgrades are fantastic and just what I like but it looks like the plumbing and electrical outlets weren't updated. And that is a big worry, according to Uncle Marcus." She said as she looked around the kitchen she had fallen in love with through the pictures online. "I love the house but there…"

After walking back through the house again we each pointed out things that were a worry to us. No exhaust fan in the bathroom. Access panel in den to the plumbing with a shut off valve. The French doors that led to the backyard were hard to open. We decided to keep it on the list but check out house number 2.

House number 2 was nixed off the list as soon as we pulled in the driveway. There was barely ten feet between the side of our house and the neighbors.

House number 3 was chopped off the list by simply walking around the house. "No porch means no where to hang the swing." Was our statement to the realtor.

House number 4 was knocked out of the running when we found that the upstairs bathroom hadn't been updated at all which meant that the plumbing, upstairs at least, hadn't been updated.

House number 5 was one we hadn't seen online but the realtor had said we needed to see. "It's in an older more established neighborhood so the lot is huge, almost 2 acres, and has been owned by the same family since it was built in the late 40's."

"Okay, we'll take a look but if it's not the one then we will just have to come back in a few weeks to look again." I told her as I guided Bella to our car. "We'll follow you."

"This is so exhausting." Bella complained as she leaned her head back on her headrest as I followed the realtor to a house we had no clue about. "Maybe we're being too picky, you think?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't think we're being too picky. My mom warned me that pictures could be deceiving and this was harder than I thought it was going to be. Let's take a look at this last house and give it a chance. If it's not the one, we'll call this weekend a bust and try again after graduation. Sound good?"

"Sounds perfect. I want to go take a look at wedding dresses tomorrow to get an idea of what I want to wear." She said as she looked out the window as we drove further from the hub bub of town and into the outskirts of town.

Chancing a quick glance at her I couldn't help but smile because my girl had no idea what was waiting for us back at the hotel but a text had come through about an hour ago from Emmett telling me that the surprise was waiting for them to get done 'adulting'. "Sounds terrifying."

She slapped me in the arm playfully as I turned my blinker on, following the lead of the realtor we had been using for the day. Leanne Coulter was a friend of my mom's apparently and had offered to help us last minute as a favor to my mom. "I like this driveway." Bella said as we drove down a dirt path between large groups of trees.

"I like the privacy of the trees." I told her as the trees disappeared and a beautiful house and yard came into view. "Wow." I breathed as I pulled to a stop behind Leanne's car.

Bella smiled over at me before she jumped from the car. "I love it!" She burst with giddiness as Leanne and I laughed.

"I had a feeling you would. It's not on the market yet and you are the first ones to actually see it other than me and my brothers." She said as she smiled at us kindly. "This is my childhood home." She explained with a watery smile.

"Oh." Bella muttered as she glanced between me and Leanne. "I'm sorry about your parents. It's tough but I can tell you from experience, it does get better over time." My girl whispered as she reached a hand out to clasp Leanne's. "Are you sure about selling the place?"

Leanne nodded before taking a deep breath and smiling at us. "We are. My brother, Nate, and I both are married with kids and houses of our own. This house holds a bunch of great memories for both of us but it deserves to be lived in, not just standing empty. We just finished the renovations a few weeks ago. It's not staged or anything so it's just a bunch of empty rooms. Are you sure you want to take a look inside?"

"Yes." I said firmly as I watched my beautiful girl take a look around at the property surrounding the house.

As soon as we walked onto the front porch I began picturing us living here but I just knew this was the house for us when we walked through the new front door that had beautiful side windows to allow in some extra light. The house was gorgeous. It had the perfect amount of old charm and updates to please both Bella and I. Bella groaned when she saw the old fashioned claw foot tub in the master bathroom. "It's just like mine back home." She commented before continuing on through the house.

"Maybe this can be a joint office so we can have 2 guest rooms?" Bella asked as we stepped into the little room next to the living room.

Wrapping my arm around her shoulders I pulled into my chest. "We can do whatever you want, baby. Do you want this house?"

She pulled away from me before grabbing my hand with a smile and tugging me back through all the rooms until we stepped out onto the back deck. "The swing will work perfect out here and we can have a few chairs on the front porch." Bella said as she did a twirl on the back porch. "I can really picture us here more than any other house we've looked at. I want it. Do you?" She asked softly as she looked out at the small fenced in back yard that was only a portion of the property.

"I do." I stated firmly.

"Better get used to saying those words, slugger." She teased before grabbing my hand and tugging me back inside to find Leanne. "Let's do this."

BPOV

I was dragging by the time we made it back to the hotel but the day was a successful one. Conferring with Edward's mom over the phone, she and Leanne talked us through the formal process of submitting an offer that Leanne would discuss with her brother. "Are you excited?" I asked Edward as we waited for the elevator to open so we could go up to our room.

"Of course! I can't wait to move into that house and get started on our lives. Especially after basically living with you this week." He explained as he pressed a kiss against my temple.

With a sigh I rested against him tiredly. "I was thinking that since we are getting married in less than a month that maybe we wait until our wedding night to make love for the first time. What do you think?"

I watched curiously as Edward's mouth opened and shut several times as he gazed at me before he finally grasped my cheeks and pulled me to his mouth sealing our lips in a passionate kiss. We were so caught up that we didn't hear the elevator doors slide open until a loud booming voice interrupted us. "Yo, we didn't come all this way just to watch you two make out all night."

Emmett.

"Ouch Rosie that hurt." Emmett's complaint followed a resounding slap against bare skin.

And Rose.

Here.

In Atlanta.

With a gasp I pulled away from Edward and looked around to see all of my friends standing around us. "What are you guys doing here?" I asked as I pulled Rose then Alice into a quick hug before repeating the gesture with Jasper and Emmett.

"Wedding clothes shopping." Alice said with a particular chirp in her voice. "We can shop for wedding dresses together!" She said with a small squeal but as I looked around I noticed some body was missing. Cassi.

"That's great, Ali, but where's Cassi?" I asked curiously because when Edward and I had left my house a few days ago Alice was refusing to speak to her parents and Jasper didn't have the best relationship with his either.

Edward chuckled from beside. "Always worrying about everybody but yourself. My mom offered to watch Cassi for the weekend. She has spent the week getting to know my future niece."

"Oh." I said stunned silent.

"Can we go grab something to eat now?" Emmett grumbled from behind me breaking the odd mood that had fallen over the group when I had asked about Cassi.

I smiled over at him and grinned. "YES! I'm starving!" I said as I hooked my arm through his and guided us out of the hotel lobby.


	17. Question

anyone still interested in this story? Not gonna waste my time and effort if nobody is reading it. Please drop me a message or review and let me know.


End file.
